Long Division
by Hope the Ghost Writer
Summary: <html><head></head>Cecilia is a young, Sinnoh-born trainer who travels to the Unova region to compile research for Professor Juniper. As she explores Unova for information on Zekrom and Reshiram, she begins to have unusual dreams and run-ins with both N and Team Plasma.  Book cover just added!</html>
1. Saying Goodbye to Sinnoh

"You have everything packed, right?"

"Yes, Mom."

"You have your sleeping bag?"

"Yes."

"Your toothbrush? Your deodorant? Your Pokeballs?"

"Mom, the boat-"

"Oh! The boat! It's not going to wait forever, now is it?"

I smiled at my mom. Regardless of how much of a worry wart that she was, I was still going to miss her. I was getting ready to depart from Sinnoh on a boat leaving from my hometown of Snowpoint City. It was the first time that I had ever really left home, so my mom had every right to be worried. However, I was ever so excited...not to mention a tad nervous as well.

I watched two figures run towards my mother and I. As their faded images grew closer, I could tell who they were. They were my dad and Candice, respectively. To Sinnoh, Candice was known as the gym leader of Snowpoint. To me, however, she was just my big sister. My dad and she were at the gym before they joined us at the dock. (The only reason why they couldn't join my mother and I earlier was because Candice had a last minute battle to attend to, and my dad had to make sure that nothing broke during the battle. (We had an incident a few weeks before my departure where an opponent's Pokemon went bexerk and started demolishing the gym's interior. Because of that, my dad became panicked about the gym's safety. Why? He practically owns the gym. Go figure.)

Once they met up with us, I hugged each one individually. When I hugged my dad, he whispered in my ear, "Don't come home with a boyfriend, alright?"

I elbowed him. "Dad!" I moaned, embarassed.

"Only kidding, darling," he assured me.

He pat me on the back, and then I went to hug Candice. (I bet she needed it, too, because I didn't know how she didn't freeze to death by wearing a short skirt in a climate like Snowpoint's!) "I'm gonna miss you the most," I confessed as I whispered quietly in her ear.

As we continued to hug, she told me, "I'm gonna miss you, too, little sis."

We let go of each other. Then, as she reached into the pocket of her tan skirt, she said to me, "I have a parting gift for you."

She then pulled the gift out of her pocket: a polished Icicle Badge attatched to a sparkling, silver chain. She hung it around my neck and smiled. I hugged her again. This time, she said to me, "Oh, and get a boyfriend while you're there. I'd love to see Dad's reaction."

I giggled. I immediatley stopped hugging my sister when I heard the boat's horn blare. It indicated that it was my last opportunity to board before the boat set sail. I ran over to my backpack, which was overflowing with necessities and had a sleeping bag that was rolled up tightly attatched to the top, and grabbed the objects. I put the backpack on and scurried on over to the ship, waving good-bye to my family as I did. I quickly got aboard the ship. A few minutes later, it set sail.

And that's where my journey began.


	2. Unova with a Chance of Stalker

"Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention please?" blared the ship's loudspeakers. The entire ship immediately muted, and the announcement continued: "We have now docked in Castelia City. Please gather your belongings and prepare to disembark. Thank you, and welcome to Unova!"

I was in my cabin when I got the announcement, so all I needed to do was grab my backpack and run. I did exactly that, and got off of the ship as soon as I could. I was overly excited to meet Professor Juniper; she was to assign me a very important task.

Juniper sat on a bench on the pier. She was reading a scientific journal of some sort. However, the journal went on the bench as soon as she saw me walking off of the ship. I wobbled over to the professor as I tried to regain my land legs. When I was close enough, Juniper got up from the bench. She said to me, "Cecilia, it's such a pleasure to finally meet you in person. I know we've video chatted before, but I must say that I was very excited to meet you now. Your sister has told me so much about you!"

I smiled, but I appeared to be extremely dizzy. It was my first time on a boat, and I hadn't gotten over that "woozy" feeling that you get when you're off the boat. "It's a pleasure to meet you, too, Professor Juniper!" I said as I tried to ignore my queasiness. "I can't wait to get to work on my assignment!"

She pulled several items out of her lab coat's pockets one-by-one. The first item that she had handed to me was some sort of a video watch. "That's a Cross-transceiver," she explained. "We can use it to keep in touch with each other. Make sure that you call me everytime you make an important discovery so I can keep in the loop!"

The second item that she pulled out and handed to me was a Pokedex. She then explained, "Even though I'm assuming that you know what this is, this is a Pokedex. In addition to my original assignment, I was hoping that you wouldn't mind documenting the Pokemon that you meet during your journey."

The third item was a paper map with specific areas circled in red marker. "The areas marked in red are where you can possibly uncover a lot of information on Reshiram and Zekrom. I know that there are only a few places circled, but I'm almost positive that you can benefit from visiting these places."

The fourth and final item was a small, black sphere. Regardless of its size, it was a rather heavy object. "I also would like you to stop in Nacrene City and ask Lenora-the gym leader of the city and the curator of the archaeology museam there-about this. I know that going there would be backtracking, in a sense, but one of my colleagues found this in the Relic Castle at the Desert Resort, and I feel that it might help you in your research. There's a legend about Zekrom and Reshiram that might have some sort of connection to this object."

I put the map and the sphere inside of my bag. As for the Pokedex, I put it in a pocket on the outside of the bag for easier access. "Thank you, Professor Juniper! I'll take good care of these items."

A warm smile radiated from her face. "I wish you good luck on your journey!" she said in a voice filled with hope.

As I walked off, Juniper remembered something. "WAIT!" she called out to me.

I turned around, and the Professor continued: "Make sure that you keep a good eye out on that stone. If it turns out to be valuable, then there will be people out there who will stop at nothing to get a hold of it."

I didn't quite know at the time whether or not she was targeting a specific person or group of people when she said the phrase "people out there who will stop at nothing," but I did take her warning to heart. I saluted her with a wave and nodded my head to confirm that I understood what she was saying. Then, I ran off to find the city's Pokemon Center.

**-x-**

It took me a few hours of wandering, getting lost, and eating delicious ice cream, but I eventually found the Pokemon Center. I walked inside and looked around. The Pokemon Center was a lot more spacious and polished than the ones back home; there were vending machines scattered throughout the building's interior, and there was a Pokemart inside of the Center. I was completely impressed and equally amazed. Being in a different region was such a wonder...

...but it also came to me as somewhat scary at first. I never really had the opportunity to leave Snowpoint (with the excpetion of the few times where my sister had to make guest appearances at various events), so being on my own was a totally different world to me. I had to sit down on one of the Center's vacant sofas because the Butterfree in my stomach were fluttering wildly.

The worst part was that I kept having the feeling that someone was watching me. It was almost like I kept seeing the outline of the same person watching me.  
>iMaybe I'm just seeing things...i I thought.

My head felt like it was spinning. I decided to use my backpack as a pillow and make myself comfortable on the sofa. I stetched my body across the couch and almost instantly fell into a deep sleep.


	3. WakeUp Slap'd Back to Reality

As I slept, I had the most unusual and abstract dream. I saw a set of piercing red eyes illuminating in a dark room. Then, the eyes faded away from the image, and a set of chilling blue eyes took its place. Those eyes faded, and all I could hear was the faint sound of sinister chuckling.

I woke up the moment that I felt something slapping me across the face. My eyes shot open faster than an Eevee using Agility. I sat myself up, and, still half-asleep and with my eyes cringing with pain, rubbed my bright red cheek. "A-are you okay?" a worried, feminine voice asked. "One of your pokemon just popped out of its pokeballs, which rolled out of your bag a few seconds ago, and used Wake-Up Slap on you."

I opened my eyes fully and saw my Froslass, Delilah-who was crossing her arms as she usually did-and a girl who was about a year or two younger than me. She had shoulder-legnth, blond hair with bangs that rested above her eyebrows, and she had crystal blue eyes. Her skin was pale, and she was wearing an aqua-colored, spaghetti-strap sundress that went down to just above her knees. She kept eyeing my Froslass as if she had never seen one before.

"I'm fine," I assured her. "Delilah does that every so often."

"The Wake-Up Slap thing or the jumping-out-of-her-pokeball-randomly thing?"

"Both."

She then thought of something. Shyly, she asked, "Not to sound like a stalker or anything, but are you from Unova? I've never seen one of these Pokemon before..."

The girl closely examined Delilah. My pokemon didn't like it one bit, so, as usual, she snapped. "Back up, blondie!" my Froslass barked.

The girl backed up. She was shocked by the fact that Delilah talked, but I surely wasn't. "She talks?" cried the girl.

"Yeah," I admitted. "She's not isupposed/i to, but she does."

"What," Delilah intervened, "you expect me to go around chanting 'Froslass! Froslass!' every day of my life? Nah-uh. Delilah knows how to talk. Delilah is going to talk. You got a problem with-"

I dug my face into the palm of my hand. "Okay, Delilah, I get it. You give me this rant every three days," I groaned. "Just shut up already."

I saw my Froslass' Pokeball on the floor. I grabbed it and pointed it at Delilah, causing a red beam of light to transport her inside of the object. "I'm sorry about my Froslass," I apologized to the girl. "She never really learned how to control her temper. I mean, my family was used to her sassy attitude, but this is our first time away from home. We're from Sinnoh, not Unova."

She cocked her head to the side. "Sinnoh?" the girl asked. "I've never heard of that region. Do all Pokemon there talk?"

I laughed. "No. Only Delilah."

She extended her hand out to me. "Hi, I'm August. I'm from Unova, but I'm a trainer from Nacrene City. I stopped here to heal my Pokemon before I set out again for my hometown."

My eyes lit up the moment that she said the name "Nacrene City." I remembered about Juniper's request. I extended my arm out to her as well, and we shook hands. After that, I asked August without hesitation, "Nacrene City? I need to stop there to have this item checked out by some lady named Lenora."

I dug through my bag in search of the black sphere, but it wasn't there. I began to breathe heavily, thinking in panic, _I _knew_ that letting Juniper entrust me with something seemingly important was a bad idea! I lose EVERYTHING!_

August noticed my worry. She then seemed to remember something. She ran over to a nearby table and grabbed something from a backpack that I assumed was hers. She brought the item back to me and said, "This also rolled out of your backpack before. Luckily, the only two items that I noticed had fallen out were your Froslass' Pokeball and this black sphere. Is this the item that you were talking about?"

I nodded my head. "Yes," I confirmed. "Professor Juniper of Numeva Town has asked me to explore Unova to compile research about Zekrom and Reshiram, and she gave me this sphere thinking that it might aid me in my research. She also gave me a Pokedex to fill, but that's right now a secondary quest to me. I'm focusing on my research first and the Pokedex second."

August handed me the item, and I put it in my bag. "Wow," she said in awe, "that's so interesting! I have a Pokedex, too, but I got mine from my father. It was a fourteenth birthday gift. He wanted me to go and see the world, and so he did."

I smiled. "That's sweet. My dad's only wish for me was to not get a boyfriend."

August giggled. "My dad would probably get along with your dad swimmingly. So, you never told me your name."

"I'm Cecilia," I introduced myself. "I'm from Snowpoint City in Sinnoh, and my sister's the town's gym leader."

"Related to a gym leader?" she mused. "That's gotta be exciting!"

"I guess you could put it that way."

We then changed topics again. August said to me, "I can guide you to Nacrene if you'd like, Cecilia. If we leave now, then we might be able to cross the Skyarrow Bridge-or at least most of it-by nightfall."

"Sounds great!" I agreed. "Let's go!"

Together, my first Unovan friend and I ran out of the doors of the Castelia City Pokemon Center. Even though I wanted to stay in Castelia longer, I knew that my research was supposed to come before leisure.

Besides, I kept feeling like someone was following me. I wanted to get as far away from that place as soon as possible.


	4. Help! Help! I'm Being Detained!

We made it across the bridge rather quickly, and I was suprised that it wasn't sundown by the time we did so. We had at least an hour until sunset, but August insisted on setting up camp for the night, so we ended up stopping in Pinwheel Forest. She said that she would make a fire as long as I got the wood, and I didn't argue. Being that this was my first official journey, I had a whole heck of a lot to learn.

So, I went off on my own to look for any dry wood that I could collect for the fire. I made sure to bring my bag with me in case I needed it, especially since I still felt like someone was following me.

I eventually ended up in a clearing located deep inside the forest. The warm light of the sunset peeked through a thin canopy of trees and shined on my long, jet black hair. The scent of _sakura_-cherry blossoms-filled the air. I felt totally at peace with my inner self.

Then, I heard a voice. It sounded ominous and hushed in a whispered kind of tone. I didn't know where it was coming from or who was speaking, but it sounded as if the voice was weaving through the trees and surrounding me on all sides. It whispered to me, "Let me hear the voice of your Pokemon."

I had a feeling that the voice had something to do with how I felt like someone was following me. As a precautionary matter, I reached into my bag and grabbed an Ultra Ball-Grace's Ultra Ball. I pressed the center button of the Pokeball to enlarge it, and then I tossed it into the air. Out of it came an elegant Gardevoir.

Grace the Gardevoir knew that something was wrong. I was able to tell by her facial expression. Using telepathy, Grace said to me, "I sense another human's presence, but I can't see it."

The haunting voice that seemed to have come out of nowhere had continued: "Let me hear your Gardevoir's voice."

The voice was beginning to scare me. Out of fear, I cried out, "Who's talking to me? Show yourself!"

Out of the shadows of the deep forest came a young man. His hair was long and the color of green tea, and he wore a black and white ball cap to shade his face. His piercing gray eyes looked into my jade green eyes, and I felt a surge of distress shoot through my body. I could tell that something was bothering him other than the fact that I didn't know what he meant when he said that my Pokemon had a "voice."

A bird-like Pokemon flew into the clearing and onto the young man's shoulders. The Pokemon reminded me of a Starly, but I knew that it wasn't one. "Let me hear her voice!" he cried. "Let the Pokemon do the talking!"

The character was rather intriguing, and I was curious to find out what he was aiming for. I decided to oblige to his request. "Grace," I called to my Gardevoir, "use Giga Impact on the Starly-like-Pokemon-thing!"

I then felt extremely embarassed after I had said that about the person's flying-type Pokemon. I sounded more awkward than a Psyduck.

The trainer called out to his Pokemon, "Pidove, use Wing Attack." His tone was calm and accepting, and I somewhat admired how he treated the Pokemon (which was apparently a Pidove).

Somehow, Giga Impact missed. The Pidove shot straight past Grace and, like a boomerang, came back around and hit her with Wing Attack. After the Pokemon finished attacking, it returned to the trainer's shoulder. _That Pokemon's so swift and agile!_ I thought. _I've never seen a Pokemon that gifted in my entire life._  
>"Your Pokemon's voice is distressed," the trainer explained. "Why must you hurt your Gardevoir like that? Giga Impact surely takes its toll on a Pokemon."<p>

I blurted out angrily, "Excuse me? I don't hurt; I hug."

I then realized that what I had just said also sounded really stupid.

The trainer hung his head down in disdain. "I blame Pokeballs for evoking such emotions. Trapping a Pokemon in there...it's just unorthodox."

He was making a point. I thought about Delilah, who sometimes would jump out of her Pokeball just for the heck of it.

"What are you trying to tell me?" I asked him.

All he said was, "Pokemon deserve freedom, not captivity."

I looked at him with a confused glare.

"My name's N," he introduced. "It's getting late; our paths will meet again, trainer. I know it for sure."

N then jolted off into the woods and disappeared into the advancing nightfall darkness.

Grace looked at me funny. "I was only exhausted from being attacked by his Pidove's Wing Attack," she explained telapathically. "I don't know what the heck that N person's talking about."

I dazed off into the forest. "He's strong," I admitted, "but he's also very shady-no pun intended. If we do run into him again, then I hope that we'll get to learn more about his motives."

My Gardevoir nodded with agreement. "It's getting late; we'd better find camp," she said. "Did you set up camp already?"

"My new friend August was working on that. I was supposed to get firewood, but N's short and random battle kind of sidetracked me from doing that."

"We'd better get started, then."

Together, Grace and I collected as much wood as we could as I tried to direct us back to the campsite.


	5. Dream a Dream of N

The sky was almost pitch black by the time Grace and I managed to find our way back to the campsite. It seemed that August had gotten fed up and gotten some firewood herself. However, she kindly welcomed up back to camp. "Hello, Cecilia and..."

"Grace," I told her. "This is my Gardevoir. Probably haven't seen one of these before, have you?"

"No," August admited, "but she sure is pretty!"

Grace smiled warmly. Grace was much more like an anti-Delilah; she very seldom used telapathy to talk to anyone but me (and apparently N), and she was very relaxed and simple.  
>"So," August asked with curiosity, "what happened to you two? Cecilia, did you get lost or something?"<p>

Grace and I exchanged looks. "Let's just say that we were...detained."

August cocked her head to the side. "How so?"

I laughed nervously. As nice and welcoming as August was, I just didn't feel comfortable telling her about the whole N thing. "It's a long story."

The natural lighting of the sky almost instantly turned off after that. The only source of light for miles was our campfire.

I placed the extra wood down beside a pile of sturdy rocks. After that, I took my backpack off of my back and reached into the bag for Grace's pokeball. I called her back to it and put the red-and-white orb back in the bag. On top of the heap of jumbled stuff inside of the bag was the black sphere. I pulled it out and sat on my sleeping bag, which August kindly rolled out for me while I was supposed to be looking for firewood. I played with the sphere in my hands and scrutinized it, absorbing every detail. August walked up to me and asked, "Still trying to figure out what that thing is?"

"Mhm," I confirmed.

I let out a long, loud yawn that could've woken up and frenzied an entire stampede of Tauros. "You should probably go to sleep," suggested August. "It's getting late-obviously-and the both of us need our rest."

I agreed with her, and then she went back to her sleeping bag, which was on the opposite side of the campfire. I put the sphere back into my bag, and then I placed my bag beside my sleeping bag. I then fell into a deep slumber.

The dream that I had that night was rather unusual. It was almost like an elongated version of the dream that I had earlier that day. I saw the changing eyes alternating from one color to the next. Then, I saw N's face. He repeated the same phrase over and over again: "Free the Pokemon."

I then saw the full bodies belonging to the red and blue eyes in my dream. The red eyes belonged to an enormous, black Pokemon with an electrified aura. The one with the blue eyes was more regal than the red-eyed one, with a sleek, white body and a fiery pulse.

I was slightly intimidated, especially as the dream looped almost interminably. I wondered why the images of N and the two mysterious Pokemon kept recurring in my mind.

My mind daunted me with these images all night long.


	6. N's History Lesson

We woke up the next morning and quickly packed up camp. After that, August and I set out for Nacrene City. August was energetic and happy, but I was sluggish and exhausted. I remember how she asked me along the way if I was feeling well, and I told her that I simply didn't have a quality night's sleep. (After all, it wasn't every day that I had dreams intense enough to interrupt my sleep.)

We made it to Nacrene at around noon. It was so interesting there. It was comprised of old warehouses, with the exception of a Pokemon Center and the most intricatley constructed museam that I had ever seen. There was art, culture, and music on every corner. I was so grateful to have been able to see it; it was as if everything that I loved was in one distinct city.  
>I felt as if I were drowning in a wave of nostalgia. Nacrene made me think of all of the good times that my sister and I had back home. We would spend all of our free time together listening to music and watching romantic comedies. (However, we still bickered and stuff. We wouldn't be sisters if we didn't argue <em>sometimes<em>.) But still, being in Nacrene made me wish that my sister was there to take in the sights with me.

It was still nice to have a friend with me...that is, until she told me that she had to go visit her parents at her family's warehouse. Luckily, she took the time to show me around before she told me this. We parted ways in front of the museam. As soon as she was out of sight, I entered the museam. It was a spectacular sight; the walls were lined with artifacts and fossils galore! As soon as I walked in, I knew that I needed to look around before trying to locate Lenora. There was an entire section with objects with Unown inscribed on the side, which I found fascinating. There was a section of pottery and sculpture from ancient times; another with fossils, including full skeletons that used to belong to now-extinct Pokemon; and, my favorite, an entire section of space rocks and other ancient ores.

Nacrene was becoming better and better to me by the second.

I was particularly drawn to a portion of a prehistoric cave painting. It depicted two Pokemon-a large and elegant white one and an enormous and intense black one. They looked vaguely familiar, as if I'd seen them before somewhere.

"Ah, yes," a voice that came out of (what seemed like) thin air spoke to me, "Zekrom and Reshiram-the two creators of this fine region."

I turned around and saw N. He was staring at the painting, studying it as if it were of some importance. "Oh, hello, N," I said to him.

"Greetings to you..." he replied. He seemed to want to address me by my name, but I hadn't told it to him yet.

"Cecilia," I said.

He looked at me and smiled. "Well, then," he corrected, "greetings to you, Cecilia. I told you we would cross paths again."

I smiled back at him. "Guess you were right."

He again fixed his eyes back onto the cave painting. "So, what brings you to Nacrene City?"

"Research. I'm studying Zekrom and Reshiram for Professor Juniper."

"Ah, yes. Your Gardevoir told me that. However, I'm surprised; it seems like you've never seen either of them before."

"How did you know that? Grace-my Gardevoir-told you?"

"No," he confessed, "lucky guess. Zekrom and Reshiram are the legendary Pokemon that supposedly created this region long ago. The two warred endlessly until their destruction created Unova. It was said that the two turned into the Dark and Light Stones after that. If one were to befriend it, the two could rise to power and be heroes-not like I'm suggesting that anyone would want to do that or anything."

I raised an eyebrow in confusion. _What is he on about?_ I thought. T_here's something fishy about this guy...but for some reason I find his mysterious nature to be attractive._  
>"Wow," I said. "That's one insane myth. It's almost like the one that we had back home in Sinnoh about the creation of the universe; Dialga, Palkia, all of that nonsense. Although, it's all very interesting stuff, to tell you the truth. Perhaps that's why I was selected to do this research..."<p>

"Knowlege is power," N quoted. "That's a quote to live by right there. Without knowlege, we would be nothing. Unfortunatley, that's where we're headed..."  
>I cocked my head to the side. "What do you mean by-?"<p>

I heard a person's footsteps stomping in the distance. N heard them as well, and the fact startled him somehow. "It appears that our time together has been cut short," he explained. "Until we meet again, Cecilia."

He then ran off faster than I could say a simple farewell to him.

"He's definetly hiding something from me," I noted. "I definetly want to discover what it is."

A dark skinned lady with a blue afro-like hairstyle that was wrapped in a bandana walked into the exhibit. She walked towards me, and I turned to her. "Hey there, tourist!" she greeted me, smiling. "Enjoying yourself? History and archaeology are both very exciting, aren't they? I'm Lenora. It may not look like one, but this place is also a gym-my gym!"

I smiled. "Nice to meet you, Lenora," I said with gratitude. "I was actually sent by Professor Juniper to do some research about Zekrom and Reshiram, and she asked me to find you and have you tell me about this."

She seemed interested. I quickly took the bag off of my bag and dug through it until I found the black sphere. I put my bag back onto my back and showed her the object. She bent down and scrutinized it closely. A burst of shock came to her face. "I can't believe it," she gaped, flabbergasted. "This must be the Dark Stone-the one from the myths about Zekrom and Reshiram!"

I then thought about what N had told me about the stone a few moments earlier. "Does this mean that you can tell me more about it?" I asked.

"Honey, I can tell you _loads_ about it!" she bellowed. Lenora then gestured me to a staircase in the middle of the room. "Please, follow me," she invited. "I usually don't let people into my private study unless they're here to battle me, but you're a special exception."

The gym leader rushed to the staircase, and I followed.

The feeling that someone was following me still lingered. However, the feeling subsided once I began to walk up the stairs.


	7. So THAT'S What it Does!

I don't recall ever meeting anyone who hid her secret annex under a bookshelf in a library. It was interesting, but also unusual.

We sat in Lenora's secret study, nonchalantly drinking tea as we discussed the Dark Stone.

"Have you ever heard the legend about Zekrom and Reshiram?" she asked me.

I thought about N again. I was thinking about him a lot, to be honest. "Just recently, but yes," I explained. "You see, I'm not from Unova. I'm from Sinnoh."

"Sinnoh?" she asked. "That's a long way from home, now is it?"

I nodded in agreement. "It's my first time out on my own, too. It's scary, but it's also very exciting. There are so many things here that I'd never be able to see back home in Snowpoint. For example, hiding a gym in the library of a museam? Brilliant! I wish that my sister could see this place. She's a leader herself, but compared to your gym, her gym is obsolete. (Don't tell her I said that, though.)"

Her face lit up. "Your sister's Candice? I've heard of her. Cynthia-the Sinnoh Elite Four champion-has told me about her, as well as the other gym leaders in Sinnoh. Cynthia often visits her friend's vacation home out here."  
>"How interesting," I mused.<p>

Lenora then got serious. She played with my Dark Stone in her hands as she announced, "Let's get back to buisness. The stone: how did you get it?"

"It was given to me by Juniper, not too long after disembarking the boat that took me here."

"She herself didn't know what this was?"

"Juniper told me to ask you about it. Maybe she knew what it was, but didn't want to tell me about it so I could find it our for myself?"

"Who knows." Lenora continued to focus on the Dark Stone. "The Dark Stone is pretty much _the_ artifact of the Unova region. It symbolizes the regions beginnings, but, if put in the wrong hands, can be a sure sign of endings, too."

I cocked my head to the side. "Endings? How so?"

"Okay. This is said to be Zekrom in a resting state, correct?"

I nodded my head. She continued: "So, if the right person was with Zekrom at the right time, then we'd all be doomed. Explosions. Chaos. New world order. The whole nine yards. It would be even worse if the Light Stone activated much in the same manner. It'd be the end of Unova as we know it."

My eyes grew wide. "Are you serious?"

Lenora nodded her head. "Knowledge hasn't failed me once before, sweetheart."

I, once more, thought of N. I remembered the words as if they were drilled into my head. _"Without knowlege, we would be nothing. Unfortunatley, that's where we're headed..."_

After that, I began to grow tired. "I think that I've compiled enough research. I'd love to stay longer, but I still need to report my findings to Professor Juniper and continue on with my journey and stuff."

"You can't leave just yet!" she tried to stop me. "This place is a gym, too. You have your own Pokemon, I assume. Why not battle me?"


	8. More Random than a Frozen Watchog Head

_My first battle with an Unovan gym leader..._ I thought._ No, correction: my first battle with a gym leader who isn't my sister._

Lenora and I stood opposite of each other on the vast playing field concealed in her secret study. We stared each other in the eye. I saw confidence in hers, but I had a feeling that she saw nervousness in mine.

"Two-on-two battle alright with you?" she asked.

I nodded my head in agreement. "Sure," I said. _Whatever that means_, I thought.

Lenora tossed a Pokeball into the sky, and out came this unusual squirrel-like Pokemon-something like a Linoone, only it stood on two legs and looked _super_ weird. Its eyes seemed to jump out of its head, and the Pokemon was indeed very attentive.

I pulled my Pokedex out of the outside pocket of my bag. It scanned the Pokemon and said in a synthesized voice: _"Watchog: the Lookout Pokemon. They make the patterns on their bodies shine in order to threaten predators. Keen eyesight lets them see in the dark."_

_Well, that makes one Pokemon recorded in my Pokedex.._. I thought. _I really need to learn how to balance my workload better._

I pondered my Pokemon choice for a few seconds. Before I had the chance to even try to take my backpack off, Delilah popped out of her Pokeball. I looked down at her angrily. "Delilah!" I scolded. "I was gonna get Grace!"

"Whatever," she disregarded. "I feel like I haven't battled in ages!"

I crossed my arms and looked at her disdainfully. "What?" my Froslass asked me.

I dug my head into my palm and pointed at Lenora's Watchog. "Just go," I directed my Pokemon, not looking down at her as I did.

Delilah floated onto the playing field. "A talking Froslass?" Lenora realized. "This is gonna be one heck of a battle!"

I took a good look at the Watchog before instructing, "Delilah, use Wake-Up Slap on Watchog!"

She obeyed, but Watchog's keen eyesight helped it dodge the attack. Delilah ended up piling her fist into the ground, which I must admit was hysterical. "That's what you get for jumping out of your Pokeball, honey!" I mocked.

Delilah glared at me angrily. However, that was good in this case; she fought harder when she was angry as a way to (try to) calm herself down.

"Watchog, use Thunderbolt on Delilah!"

The move hit Delilah pretty hard, but she was enraged. When's she's enraged, boy, you'd better watch out.

"Delilah, use Shadow Ball!"

Lenora raised an eyebrow. "Shadow Ball? What are you up to?"

Watchog dodged the attack, which wouldn't have done anything to it anyhow. Lenora commanded her Pokemon to use Bite. I then instructed Delilah, "Now, use Ice Beam!"

Right as the two were literally three inches away from each other, she shot a powerful Ice Beam attack in Watchog's face. The big-cheeked Pokemon's face was pretty much a block of ice. It fell over because it couldn't keep its head upright due to the weight that the coating of ice added. It was actually pretty funny, to tell you the truth. Delilah and I nearly fell on the floor because we were laughing so hard.

Lenora looked nervous. "I'm assuming that your sister trained you," she said. "No wonder why you were able to pull off a strategy like that."

I replied, "Yeah, but I think watching her in battle helped me with this one. She has a Froslass, too."

Delilah made a disgusted face. "UGH! Don't remind me!" she grimaced.

(You see, Delilah and my sister's Froslass don't really like each other. It's a never-ending tension that should be saved for another story at another time. Let's just leave it at that.)  
>"Very observant," Lenora noted, "like an archaeologist. That's a useful trait to have, sister."<p>

I began to wonder whether or not Watchog was still able to battle, but that was until it began squirming and panicking as its head slowly began to defrost. "Delilah, use Wake-Up Slap!"  
>She then began slapping the partially-frozen Watchog. (Now THAT was funny.) Delilah somehow managed to slap through the ice (which I never thought she could do, considering that Wake-Up Slap works best on <em>sleeping<em> Pokemon).

After Delilah finished using Wake-Up Slap, my eyes-as well as Lenora's-immediatley fixed themselves on the Watchog, which was laying on the floor. It was unfrozen, but the battle wasn't over until the Watchog had fainted (as with all Pokemon battles).

After about two or three minutes, Lenora announced, "Congratulations, your Froslass defeated my Watchog. Now for part two!"

She sent her Watchog back to its Pokeball and grabbed another ball. Right as she was about to send out another Pokemon, we heard a shrill, panicked cry from the main area of the museam: "AIIIIIEEEEE!"

Lenora realized, "That's my husband! Something's gone wrong. Come with me, Cecilia. It's time to get down to buisness."

She dashed out of the room as fast as she could, and I followed. _This day just gets more and more interesting,_ I thought.


	9. Is it Cold in Here, or is it Just Me?

Lenora, Delilah, and I looked down at the scene of the crime. Windows were broken. People huddled together in a corner, shivering with fear. Several museum employees were tied to the columns that were supporting the building, with one being a man with flat, carefully groomed hair, peach skin, and glasses. He seemed to be most frightened out of all the employees. Lenora scurried down the stairs, crying out, "It's okay, honey! Mama's got'cha!" I assumed that this man was her husband.

The costumed freaks looked at Lenora and realized that she could untie the shackled employees, so they went after her. She sent out a dog-like Pokemon and fought off the villains by using its Roar attack. I pulled out my Pokedex, and (rather loudly) screeched: _"Herdier, the Loyal Dog Pokemon. It loyally follows its Trainer's orders. For ages, they have helped Trainers raise Pokémon."_

A bunch of the thieves looked straight at me once they heard my Pokedex call out the name of Lenora's Pokemon. One of the thieves even pointed at me and instructed, "She could get the Light Stone before us! Get her!"

A herd of the costumed thieves stampeded towards me, and I began running. I looked back and noticed that Delilah was still standing at the top of the stairs. "What are you doing?" I yelled at her. "Run!"

She ignored orders and continued to float in place. I then realized that she had a strategy of her own up her sleeve (err...arm? I don't know...idioms and Pokemon don't really work together, do they?). I turned around and ran back over to my Froslass. Once the thieves got close enough, she summoned a huge blizzard that swarmed the entire room. I crossed my arms in front of my face as I tried to shield myself from the storm. The villains on the stairs slowly began to freeze into chunks of ice. The people in the room below shivered violently, but the blizzard didn't have as much of an effect on them. Once Delilah finished using Blizzard, the people on the stairs were frozen in their tracks. The other accomplices fled instantly, screeching things like, "Run away!" and "Plasmaaaaaa!"

Lenora finally managed to untie her husband. Once he was free, the two hugged. After that, Lenora looked up at Delilah, who looked like she was ready to pass out, and I. "Thank you so much you two!" she gratefully said. She then remembered something. "Wait, go check the Light Stone! It's in the same exhibit as the cave painting of Zekrom and Reshiram. It's in the back, right-hand side of the room in a display case. Hurry, and quick!"

Delilah decided to lay on the ground and rest, leaving me to venture to the back of the museam and check for the Light Stone myself. I obeyed Lenora's orders and ran over to the exhibit. Then, when I was in the correct area, I focused my attention on the specific part of the room that Lenora said that the artifact was in. I ran over to the back, right-hand corner of the room and began to look at all of the display cases. Before I began looking for the Light Stone, I took my Dark Stone from my bag and used it for reference. I then scrutinized every artifact carefully until I found this particularly small display case. Inside of it was a small, white stone similar to my Dark Stone. _This must be it,_ I thought.

I ran back to the main area to tell Lenora the good news, putting my Dark Stone back into my bag as I did. When I got there, I pulled out Delilah's Pokeball and sent her back to it for a good rest. After that, I looked at the main area below me. Lenora and the bystanders all pitched in to untie the shackled workers. The janitors were sweeping up the broken windows, and Lenora's husband was off to the side, calling someone (probably to work on getting the museum's windows replaced). Lenora was talking to some of the bystanders, apologizing for the chaos that had occurred. She noticed that I was back and ran up the stairs to talk to me. "So," she asked with concern, "did they get the Light Stone?"

"Nope," I assured her. "The case was untouched, and the object was in its place."

She let out a sigh of relief. "Oh thank Arceus!" she cheered. "Honey, if it weren't for you and your Froslass, the world would probably come to an end."

I showed a confused expression at first, then remembered what she had told me earlier about what would happen if the Light and Dark Stones got into the wrong hands. "It was nothing," I explained. "Back home, my sister prepared me for potential Team Galactic attacks, although I wasn't prepared for Delilah to use Blizzard on those rogues-maybe Ice Beam, but not Blizzard. I actually didn't know that she knew that move, to be honest."

"Well, forget the rest of the gym battle." She pulled out a rectangular trinket from her apron. It was a deep purple in the center and lined with gold around the edges; there were also gold stripes running through the top and bottom poles of the trinket. "This is the Basic Badge. You deserved it. It's the least I can do to thank you for preventing an apocalypse."  
>"But," I protested. "I didn't even finish battling you! My sister's had run-ins with disaster plenty of times. She'd never-"<p>

Lenora winked as she put the badge in my hand. "You have promise. Go earn the other ones fair and square. However, you deserved this: both you and your Froslass displayed great power. That's what getting a gym badge tells people; you have proven yourself to be worthy of a good battle. If I were you, I'd backtrack a little. Go to Striaton City and battle Cress, Chili, or Cilan."

She began to walk back to her study. "But, wait!" I called out.

Lenora turned around again. "Yes?"

"Who _were_ those goons back there?"

"The ones trying to steal the Light Stone? That was Team Plasma. They're a rather unusual bunch. Not really sure what they're trying to use the Light Stone for, but it sure ain't good, honey."

Lenora then turned her back to me and walked back to her study.

I simply watched her fade away into the distance. Once she was out of sight, I glimpsed down at the badge that she had put in my hand. Lenora's words echoed in my mind: _"You have promise."_

I decided to take a chance with this whole "gym leader battling" thing. As a growing adolescent, I wasn't quite sure what I wanted to do with my life yet. I decided to take up battling gym leaders as a way to fill up my Pokedex and determine my destiny. _Who knows?_ I thought. _Maybe I'll end up following in Candice's footsteps one day._

As I looked at the badge, I thought, _Where to put this?_ I didn't have a badge case like some of Candice's opponents did. However, I did have a backpack. I pinned the page to the inside of the front pocket of my backpack. _There,_ I thought, satisfied with my decision, _now it's safe_ and _stored securely._

I walked down the stairs slowly. There was pride in my step and a faint smile on my face. (It would've been a full smile, but I was exhausted and hungry.) When I reached the bottom of the stairs, Lenora's husband ran over to greet me. "Hello!" he said, smiling warmly. "Thank you for protecting the Light Stone. Allow me to introduce myself: I'm Hawes, the assistant director of the Nacrene Museum and Lenora's husband. Let me just say that you are welcome back any time."

"Thank you sir," I told him. "I'd love to stay, but it's nearly five in the afternoon, and I have loads to do before nightfall."

"Before you do, let me give you Lenora's Cross-tranciever number."

He punched the number into the video watch device, and I watched carefully (as I had no idea how to do any of that junk with the thing at the time). "Thank you, but do you mind telling me how to call with this thing? Professor Juniper gave me this, and I don't know how to use it quite yet."

He gave me a short tutorial on using the Cross-tranciever, and then said, "Lenora seemed to grow fond of you. If we ever need your assistance, we'll give you a call."

"Thank you, sir," I told him as I left the building. _  
><em>


	10. A Trainer Walks Into a Warehouse Cafe

"Really?" Juniper said in wonder after I had updated her on my findings. "That's so intriguing! I knew that there was something important about that Dark Stone I gave you, but I never expected it to possibly be Zekrom itself!"

I then told her about everything that had happened since she had left me in Castelia City-meeting August, the Basic Badge, everything...except about N. That I wanted to keep a secret.  
>Juniper was extremely interested in hearing about my journey. "Lenora's a great gym leader and an even better person," the professor told me. "The fact that she honors your strength is great, and I think that you should take her advice and challenge the other leaders."<p>

"But wouldn't that be deviating from my original mission?" I asked her.

She winked at me. "Don't think that you're bound to completing the task I originally gave you. Part of the joy of going on your first journey is experimenting with everything you can. You should be able to enjoy yourself, as well as find out what you're destined to be. Take your time on the research; I think your main priority should be to discover yourself before other Pokemon."

"But I thought the research was what brought me to Unova in the first place!"

Juniper sighed. "You should put you as a person before you as a historian."

"But, Juniper-"

She ended the call. I banged my head on the table of the restaraunt I was in. I was still in Nacrene City; the sun was going down, and it appeared to me that I would have to stay the night at the city's Pokemon Center.

A waitress walked up to my table and, in a familiar voice, asked, "So, have you decided on what you want to order, or are you going to just bang your head on the table until you do?"

I looked up at her. It was August: my first Unovan friend. "August!" I cheered. I got up from my seat and hugged her.

"Hey, Cecilia," she responded as we hugged. We let go of each other, and she took a good look at me. "Geez," she said, disgusted, "you look like a mess. What happened?"

She gave me the compact mirror in the white apron that she was wearing. I held it up to my face and noticed that my hair was a disheveled mess. "Oh my!" I yelped. "Well, I guess I have some explaining to do."

"How about I get us some sodas and a basket of chips," August suggested, "and then you can explain what happened."

**-x-**

After I had finished telling August about my day (which included everything that didn't involve N), she said in bewilderment, "Wow! She really just gave you the badge? That's incredible!"

I ate a chip and took a sip from my soda. "Yeah," I confessed. "I don't think that she should've given it to me that easily, but she was really grateful for what I did. I guess the myths about these Light and Dark Stones are taken pretty seriously here."

"When you can't distinguish between fact and fiction," she explained, "people can take a lot of these things seriously. I mean, we all need to believe in something, right?"

"I guess you have a point there." I sipped some more of my soda. "Not to get off topic, but your parents really own this place?"

"Yep. It's been in my family for about one hundred years-back to when all of these warehouses began to be used for many purposes. I usually work here when I visit. It's always a good thing to help the family."

As I poked at the ice cubes in my soda glass with a straw, I asked out of curiosity, "Not to get off topic or anything, but what have you been travelling for?"

She explained, "About two years ago-right before I turned thirteen-I had a dream to see the world. I told my family about it, and they were all for it-except for maybe my dad, who was a bit worried. However, he eventually warmed up to the idea. He gave me a shiny, new Pokedex for my birthday and told me, 'Go get 'em, Liepard.' That's where my journey began. I travelled on my own for most of my journey, only to recieve guidance from a few random travellers along the way. It was a lonely road, yes, and I sorta became a bit timid and nervous because of it (especially since I've had a few run-ins with vicious Sewaddle). Even after all I had gone through, I discovered what I wanted to do. I didn't just want to explore Unova, but I also wanted to be a powerful trainer. I may not look the part, but I decided that I wanted to become the Champion of the Unova Pokemon League. It's a goal that still lingers, but I'm only two badges short of being admitted to the Pokemon League."

"Wow," I said in awe. I never thought that someone as shy and awkward as her could have a dream so incredible and so close as hers. Hearing her speak about her goals and dreams was inspiring, and it also coincided with the words that Juniper had used earlier to convey the same idea.

"I was going to settle down a bit before venturing back to Northern Unova for the last two badges that I need," she explained, "but I was kind of hoping that I could...maybe...tag along with you. You don't really know your way around Unova, and I'm dying to learn about your home region. Plus, travelling alone is rather...lonely, so to say. I've never had a long-term travelling companion."

I understood what she was saying. Having a travelling buddy would be good, not only for guidance, but for company. Plus, she knew more about travelling than me (so much for that whole phrase about how older people are wiser than younger people), and I didn't have my sister to turn to this time. I needed a friend more than ever. "Sure," I agreed, "but we'd need to stop at the Striaton City Gym first so I can get my next badge."

"Easier said than done," she accepted. We shook hands, and that was the (official) beginning of our blossoming friendship.

I looked outside the window and noticed that it was pitch black out. "You're going to need a place to stay for the night," August noted. "We live on the upper level of the warehouse. We have a rolling cot that we save for visitors that you can sleep on. My parents probably wouldn't mind. I'll go ask them right now, in fact."

August ran off to the kitchen to talk to her parents. During her absence, I ate chips and sipped on my soda. I stopped everything once my Cross-Tranciever began to chime. I tapped the answer button, and the video call commenced.

It was Candice. "Juniper gave me your number a few minutes ago, so I thought I'd give you a call. What's up, sister?"

I grinned happily. "Oh my Arceus, I miss you so much! How's everything back at the gym going?"

"Good," she put it simply. "I heard that you won a gym badge from Lenora. Nice job! Planning on overthrowing me one day? Ha ha!"

"I seriously don't think I deserved it, though," I confessed. "I mean, she just gave it to me, no questions asked."

"I know; Juniper told me the story," Candice told me. "I never gave people gym badges for helping get rid of some cranky Team Galactic members because those freaks just come and go naturally. They never actually stole anything that would cause the end of civilization like that artifact that the professor gave you. I totally second Lenora's choice to give you the badge. That must've been, like, one epic showdown. I'll need in-depth deets about all of the crazy shenanigans that you're gonna get into when you come home someday. You're, like, living the dream!"

I cocked my head to the side. "But I thought that you loved being the gym leader!"

"Ah, but I don't leave home much, now do I?" she pointed out. "Being a gym leader is great, but not as great as seeing the world and experiencing thrills every day. My journey ended long ago, when I returned home after earning seven of the eight official Sinnoh badges and Dad just, like, gave me the title of gym leader for all of my accomplishments. I ended up getting the eighth and final badge from Dad when I returned home that day-and I don't think that you remember that day because you were a mere infant-but I never got to go on and face the Pokemon League or anything. I want you to go and live the dream-become the Champion and make me proud. I'd love for you to come home and try to beat me, along with the rest of the gym leaders in Sinnoh, one day."

Tears built up in the corner of my eye. "I'll make you proud, sis. I promise."

"Good. Now, on the topic of getting you a boyfriend-"

August returned from the kitchen. "Okay, you can stay the night. I'll go set up the cot right-" She stopped talking as soon as she saw me talking on my Cross-tranciever. She peered over my shoulder to see who I was talking to. "Who's your friend?" Candice asked.

"Is that your sister, the gym leader?" August asked. "She looks a lot like you, minus the eye color."

I began the introductions. "Candice, this is my new travelling partner, August. August, this is my sister, Candice-gym leader of the Snowpoint Gym."

August was dumbfounded; she couldn't believe that she was having a conversation with a gym leader from another region. "Oh my, well, honored to meet you," August greeted.  
>Candice chuckled. "Nice to meet you, too," she said. "Hey, while you're exploring Unova with my sister, can you help her get a boyf-"<p>

"We're losing connection, Candice. Talk...bzzt!...to...bzzt!...you...bzzt!...la-bzzt! bzzt! bzzt!

I ended the call. "Sorry," I apologized to August, "but my sister's really focused on seeing me with a boyfriend. She's all for that sappy romance stuff."

"It's fine," said August with tolerance.

The two of us looked around and noticed that everyone was gone from the cafe; it was almost like the entire area was deserted. "Well," August suggested, "I think we should work together to clean up this place, then go to sleep so we can begin our journey together early in the morning."

I just went along with what she said-after all, she was practically my eyes on this adventure.

* * *

><p><strong><em>**AUTHOR'S NOTE** M'kay. I had some issues with the italics here, so I didn't feel like going back to fixing the entire chapter all over again. XD You see, when I wrote the original, I had to use HTML to code the wordsphrases that were meant to be written in italics. It doesn't seem like Document Manager gets along with HTML that well, so it makes my life ten times harder. LOL Again, sorry for the lack of italics. ^_^_**


	11. Calloused Stares and Evil Glares

That night, I had another dream. Joy.

It wasn't quite like my other dreams. This time, I saw the Light Stone in front of a black backdrop. Everything was quiet and still...that is, until a faint contour of N's face appeared in the vision. He spoke, "I will befriend you, Reshiram. Together, we can save Unova from tyranny."

His contour faded away, and the Light Stone began to form cracks at the surface. A bright, electric blue light beamed through the quickly growing cracks in the stone. Eventually, it exploded and unleased an elegant white Pokemon. It was humongous-probably eight feet tall, or even taller. It had claws attatched to flowing white wings. The figure of the Pokemon was elegant and refined, while also strong and mighty. It was a truly amazing sight...

...until the dang mirage spit fire into my dream. The image startled me, causing me to roll off of the cot I was sleeping on and onto the floor of August's room. She woke up and jerked her head in many directions in order to look around the room.. Once she realized that I was on the floor, she asked, "What, is the bed not comfortable or something?"

"No," I told her. "Just a really bad dream is all."

"Maybe my Munna could help with that," she suggested. "They're almost like dream catchers, except animate."

"No thank you," I refused as I got up off the floor and crawled back into my bed.

I put the covers on me and went back to sleep, this time without the freaky dreams.

**-x-**

We arrived in Striaton City about two days later. (It probably would've taken a day or two longer if August didn't know all of the shortcuts.) It was about ten AM-ish when we took our first steps into Striaton City. "I haven't been here in what feels like forever," August noted. "I already got the Trio Badge, but now it's your turn to get it. You might want to go and set up an appointment at the gym first. Here, follow me."

I trailed behind my friend as we walked to the Striaton Gym. I looked around at all of the skyscrapers and buildings as we did. I thought the sight was amazing, but August didn't seem all too impressed (probably because she had seen it all before). Before we knew it, we were outside of the gym, which was a large structure built of stone. The majestic building towered over us, casting a tremendous shadow with such amazing grace. We walked inside to a gym that looked more like a restaraunt. "This is the gym?" I whispered to August doubtfully.

"Just follow my lead," she instructed. August walked over to a counter on the side of the room. I heard her tell the lady behind the counter, "I'm here to make, ah, a reservation for my friend, Cecilia of Snowpoint City, to battle one of the gym leaders. When's your earliest time?"

The lady at the counter gave her a time slot on a slip of paper. August took a quick glimpse at it, then asked as politely as she could, "Are you sure that you don't have a time slot earlier than this?"

Counter Lady simply nodded, confirming that there was no other time for me to battle other than the one given to August. "Okay, then," August quietly thanked, "I guess that this will have to do. Thank you, I suppose."

August walked away, clutching the slip of paper in her right hand. "The earliest time slot is tommorrow at noon," August explained as she handed me the sheet with the official time slot stamped on it. "I hope you don't mind hanging out in Striaton for an extra day."

I told her, "So what? I get to see the rest of the city now! I'm thrilled."

"Glad to hear," she said. "I think we should split up and look around on our own for a bit. I'll even try to get us a visitors' cabin at the Pokemon Center right now."

"Visitors' cabin?" I asked.

"Yeah," she explained, "all Pokemon Centers have cabins prepared for any and all trainers visiting a specific town or area. However, they tend to fill up fast, especially when there's a special even going on in the area. It's always best to reserve a room when you first arrive in a town so you don't get stuck sleeping on the couch, but there are usually more than enough cabins to go around in the long run."

I nodded my head in agreement. _And while she's gone_, I thought, _then maybe I'll get lucky enough to run into N._

We left the gym and saw a crowd massing together before our very eyes. In front of the crowd, on both ends, stood two Team Plasma minions holding flags that displayed the team's insignia. In the middle of the two flag holders was a green-haired man wearing an unusual shroud that was decorated with a pattern of eyes and that was adorned with a crown-like neckline. He had a gold monocle with a red lens over his left eye. His face seemed to be worn and rather calloused-not just physically, but emotionally as well. All in all, he seemed to be wearing a clever guise, acting as if he was there to speak with a purpose.

As the people in the crowd were chattering things like, "What is going on?" and "What is he here to speak about?", the green-haired man raised his hand and called out, "People of Striaton City, please, settle down!"

The crowd instantly silenced. "Let's get a closer look at this," August gestured. "I'm kinda curious."

I agreed one-hundred percent; I wanted to know what the man was going to speak about as well. I had a feeling that there was something fishy about the man, considering that he must've been from the same group that had tried to steal the Light Stone from the Nacrene Museam earlier that week, but I figured that listening to his speech would give me an idea as to why Team Plasma was trying to steal the Light Stone. August and I joined the crowd and listened closely to what the man had to say.

"Good afternoon, everyone. I am Ghestis-a representative of Team Plasma. What I am here to speak about is rather brief and straightforward, but also very crucial to the survival of both mankind and Pokemonkind alike." People began to whisper to each other in confusion. Ghestis continued: "Here at Team Plasma, we support a better world-a world where Pokemon are freed from the pain and suffering caused by being trapped in those virulent contraptions you call 'Pokeballs.' Well, mind my words when I say that Pokemon deserve to be free!" (Ghestis' speaking was both loud and convincing. Trainers began to question each other through soft murmurs. I remained stolid, but I noticed that August was still attentively listening.) Ghestis bowed his head and began to cry tears-tears of fraudulence, that is. My uneasy feeling towards him stregnthened as he forged on with his speech: "Seeing Pokemon trapped in Pokeballs...abused in battle..." He began to spew more waterworks from his eyes. I was left unfazed by his "tears" and simply just rolled my eyes. "It's such a horrible sight!" He rubbed his face with his long shroud. "I'm sorry for getting emotional, but please take my words to heart. Release your Pokemon. Please. If you love them, then you'd let them go."

The crowd chatted amongst themselves, questioning whether or not to take Ghestis' advice. I, myself, crossed my arms and thought, _What a waste of ten minutes._  
>August poked my shoulder. "I-I don't want to believe what he's saying," she admitted, "but he's such a powerful speaker! I don't know what to th-" She stopped speaking and looked at Ghestis for a minute.<p>

"What?" I asked her. "You okay?"

August didn't look back at me. "Call me crazy, but I think Ghestis is staring at you."

I looked at him myself. August was right-he was looking at me. He seemed disgusted by my presence. _Maybe he heard about the whole Light Stone thing,_ I considered.

His spiteful stare dug deep into my soul, and it seemed as if he was trying to tell me silently, _"You disgust me, you wretched trainer, you!"_

I didn't feel safe being in such a close vicinity to him. "I'm going to go and look around Striaton," I told August.

"Ghestis creeping you out?" she understood. "I couldn't agree more. Let's both get away from this corruption before our brains explode or something." I laughed. She added, "I'm going to reserve our cabin. After that, I'm going to study at the Trainers' School for a bit. Meet me back at the Pokemon Center by 6, I guess."

We went our separate ways. As I tried to distance myself from Ghestis, I looked back at the shrewd man once more. He was still staring me down-a fact that instilled a feeling of fear inside of me.


	12. Attack of the Tempermental Froslass

I walked down a block in Striaton City. I wasn't quite sure where I was, but I sure as heck didn't feel secure; I kept turning around to see if Ghestis was following me. However, this caused me to accidentally collide with someone. I fell to the ground and complained, "Hey! Watch where you're-"

I immediatley stopped talking when I looked up and saw N staring down at me. "So," he said, "we meet again. I knew we would bump into each other sooner than later, but not _literally_."

I giggled at N's speculation. He extended his arm to me, and I grabbed it. He helped me get back on my feet. "Sorry for yelling at you," I apologized.

"Perfectly fine." He stared at the sky as if he were in a daze. Without looking down at me, he said, "I heard about the disaster at the Nacrene Museum. The way that your Froslass used Blizzard to protect you...It shows that she cares. If-if I could just hear her voice for a moment to confirm my belief..."

I put my hands on my hips. "What's with this whole 'hearing the voice of Pokemon' thing?" I asked him. "You're all obsessed with it. I mean, what's so important about it?"

He let out a deep sigh. "I grew up watching Pokemon be abused by trainers. I actually converse better with Pokemon than with people. I like to hear what they're saying because I care about them. When I say I'm listening to a Pokemon's voice, I'm listening to their emotions and basically their entire life story through both their words and their actions. In fact, when I battled your Gardevoir many days ago, I didn't just feel her exhaustion-I felt her trust towards you. It was a shock to me, considering that all of the many trainers that I've known were brutes. I'm starting to question whether all trainers are evil or not. Please, just let me hear the voice of your Froslass. Please."

My expression was confused, but my words were clear and true: "Fine...but her words are a lot clearer than even the average person would expect."

I took my bag off of my back and dug through it in search of Delilah's Pokeball. As I looked for it, the Dark Stone rolled out of my bag. N picked it up for me, but, instead of giving it back to me right away, he closely examined it. "Incredible," he noted, "this is the Dark Stone!"

I finally found Delilah's ball after he had said that. I quickly zipped up my bag and popped back up to eye level with N. I cupped my hand over his mouth and looked around, taking the Dark Stone as I did. "Don't announce it to the whole world!" I scolded him.

He took my hand off of his mouth. I put the Dark Stone back in my bag. N looked puzzled. "Why be ashamed of possessing such a valuable artifact?" he asked me. "You can change the fabric of the world with that marvel!"

"I don't really believe in those myths," I explained to N.

"Then why is it still in your possession?"

I thought about that long and hard. "Well...Lenora asked me to protect it from falling into the wrong hands."

"Mhmm." He rolled his eyes.

"Let's change the subject a bit," I recommended. "You still wanna hear Delilah's voice?"

"If it is to your consent, then, by all means, yes."

I threw Delilah's Pokeball in the air, and out came my feisty little Froslass. "I. WAS. SLEEPING," she moaned. Her hollow body turned away from me and focused on N's figure. She took a good look at him before sneering, "Who's THIS freak?"

N looked baffled. "Pardon?" he said with shock. "My, what an attitude you have, not to mention the ability to speak!"

"I kinda wish that I wasn't speaking to _you _though, Lettuce Head!" she sassed back.

I put my hands on my hips. "Delilah," I said, trying to be calm, "this is my, ah, friend N (I guess). Be nice. Please. Just this once."

She crossed her arms and (sorta) slouched in mid-air. "Fine," she agreed. "Hello, N. (What kind of name is-)"

I looked at her straight in the eye, and she stopped. "Delilah," I requested, "please show some manners." To N's discontented face, I apologized, "Sorry for her attitude. She's actually really nice once you get to know her. She just has a bit of an attitude problem is all."

"Hey!" shouted Delilah.

I elbowed her as a motion to get her to stop. _Why, out of all of my Pokemon, did he want to meet her?_ was the only thought that was running through my mind. I pretended to smile and acted like nothing was bothering me.

N hesitantly crouched down to eye level with Delilah. "Hello," he greeted in a soothing voice. "Mind if I ask you a few questions?"

Delilah took a deep breath. "Okay, I guess," she agreed, not really thrilled to talk to him.

"Please answer my questions with honesty. What do you think of Cecilia?"

"Oh, Cece?" My face went red the moment that Delilah used my nickname. "We get on each other's nerves at times, but she's actually a really great trainer. She and I go _way_ back. Sure, she finds me annoying and I would easily say the same about her at times, but we got each other's backs."

I smiled. "That was the nicest thing that I've ever heard you say!" I complimented her as I was overwhelmed with shock. "Why don't you ever say those things to my face?"

"I...don't...know..." the Froslass admitted. "I'm kinda creeped out, to tell you the truth." He looked in N's face. "What kinda witchery are ya corrupting my mind with?"

N simply chuckled and pat Delilah on the head-something she didn't really liked, but was kind enough (for once) to deal with it. "No sorcery," he put it simply, "just kindness."

"Okay," she openly admitted to N's pale face, "you're starting to creep me out." My Pokemon turned back to me and asked, "Cece, can I go back into my Pokeball?"

"If it will get you to stop calling me Cece, then yes," I bargained.

Delilah smiled. "Whatever..._Cece_."

She stuck her tongue out at me. Regardless of the fact that she defied my orders, I sent her back into her Pokeball. As I put Delilah's Pokeball back into my backpack, N decided to elaborate on what he heard from Delilah, "Your Froslass...you two might not always see eye-to-eye, but you two also share a special bond between each other. I-I've never seen anything quite like it. It's actually pretty inspiring."

"I treat my Pokemon like friends," I told N. "I nicknamed them all right after I obtained them (and apparently they think that its okay to nickname me back). From the moment I did so, I felt like there was a special, irreplacable bond between us.

"Speaking of nicknames, please don't call me Cece. I hate that name so much, but Delilah thinks its hysterical and likes to annoy me with it whenever possible."  
>He smiled and put his right hand on my left shoulder. "Not a problem," he agreed.<p>

Suddenly, N began to look around him in all directions. He seemed a bit worried and panicked. "You look more frenzied than a startled Tauros!" I pointed out to him. "What's up?"

"This isn't the place to continue talking," he said. "If you don't mind, I think we should continue our conversation in a more secure location, like perhaps an abandoned building or something."

"Excuse me?"

"We're being followed. I don't know who it is, but I don't feel comfortable knowing that people are eavesdropping. I certainly don't like it one bit. I'd love to leave and call it a day, but I would prefer that we continued our conversation elsewhere." N thought long and hard for a moment before he concluded his statement. "Ah! Follow me, quick!"

"Wait, wha-"

Before I could protest, N grabbed my wrist and began pulling me somewhere.


	13. It's a Dreamyard After All

N ended up taking me to the ruins of what used to be a Pokemon lab. The area was just on the outskirts of Striaton. It was just about 4PM, meaning that I still had time to kill, but only two hours' worth. N and I sat next to each other on two different empty oil barrels that were adjacent to each other. It was the kind of semi-demi-romantic moment that my sister would obsess over. "This is the Dreamyard," N explained. "A Pokemon called Munna lives around here. They're cute little things, but they enjoy eating others' dreams."

I remembered ever-so vaguely about what August had told me about her Munna a few nights before. "Just a few nights ago, a nightmare startled me and made me fall out of bed. My travel companion, August, suggested that her Munna could eat my nightmare so I could sleep without a problem, but I refused."

"Good," said N with relief. "Dreams are like thread-they're important to our existance, much like how thread is important in sewing fabric together to make a shirt. I always listen to my dreams because they seem to speak to me, like how I speak to Pokemon. I see messages in them...messages of today, tommorrow, and the future. Sometimes my dreams are straightforward; other times, they're rather vague and abstract. Tell me, have you ever experienced the same thing, Cecilia?"

_Well,_ I considered, _he was in two-thirds of my dreams. If I should talk to anyone about my dreams, it's him._

"Well, N," I began to explain, "I've had a few dreams-all about Zekrom and Reshiram. I mean, the dreams were extremely foggy and not in the least lucid. I-I still can't make out what they're trying to tell me. Like, I understand that there must be a purpose behind them, but I can't quite determine exactly what that purpose _is_ yet."

N seemed extremely intrigued. "Could you elaborate?" he asked. "Could you describe one of them for me?"

I then gave him a detailed and thorough description of my most recent dream, which involved him stating how he would become Reshiram's friend. "Really, now?" he asked, somewhat perplexed, somewhat shocked. "You saw all of that in a single dream?"

"Yes, but can _you_ make sense of it for me? I mean, you were in it."

He closed his eyes and bowed his head. "I wish I could further elaborate, but I can't. However, keep paying attention to your dreams. Remember: they could be telling you something."

"Like...like what?"

"Who knows? My dreams have given me rather accurate views of the past, present, and future. I, myself, don't quite understand how dreams work, but I feel like they can be very a very powerful factor in the life of a determined trainer like you, Cecilia. Don't let your dreams die out."

Okay, I was seriously confused. "What do you-"

A small Pokemon floated into the scene. It was plump and had a pink exterior that was decorated with a purple flower pattern. I thought it was the cutest thing ever. "Awh!" I squealed. "What is that thing? It's adorable!"

"That's Munna," N explained, "the-"

Before he had the chance to describe Munna further, I whipped my Pokedex out of my backpack and scanned the Pokemon. The Pokedex entry read: _"Munna: the Dream Eater Pokemon. It eats the dreams of people and Pokémon. When it eats a pleasant dreams, it expels pink-colored mist."_

N couldn't stand the sight of my Pokedex. "Please," he begged, "put that fowl contraption _away_!"

I turned to him. "What, you mean my Pokedex?" I asked.

"Yes. That's _exactly_ what I was alluding to. I can't stand those things."

I put it in my bag in respect for him. After that, I walked up to the Pokemon and looked at it. "And please don't try to catch it, either!" he requested. "Pokemon don't need to be trapped in Pokeballs. Let them roam free!"

I tuned the last part about letting Pokemon free out of my mind. The Munna looked frenzied and worried. I focused on the cute Pokemon and said to it in a pleasant tone, "Hello there, Munna. Are you lost?" I stroked my hand across the Pokemon's back, and all of the fear subsided from its body. It came over to me and let me hold it. "Don't worry, little guy; everything will be just fine."

"Wow," N said in awe, "that Munna hasn't been with you for even a measely minute and it already likes you!"

I petted Munna's head as I told N, "When I was afraid as a child, my sister would always relax me by talking to me in a soothing voice, telling me that everything would be okay. Pokemon seem to respond to the same action in a similar manner-at least that's what I've noticed."

N seemed...inspired, if you put it that way. "I wish that all trainers knew that."

He looked up at the sky while I focused most of my attention on Munna. In the distance, I heard footsteps. Apparently, N did too. It didn't seem like something that he wasnted to hear either. "I-I must be off," he stuttered. "Can you manage getting back to town on your own, or do you need me to guide you back?"

"I'm fine," I assured him. I actually wasn't quite sure if I could, but I didn't want to leave Munna just yet. (I also didn't want N to leave either, but I guess I had to choose between either one or the other in that particular situation.)

"Well, it was nice seeing you again, Cecilia," N said. He began to walk away.

"Until next time?" I asked, still cuddling Munna in my arms.

"Until next time," he confirmed.

Before I knew it, he was out of sight.

I looked down at Munna. "You're a quiet little one, aren't you?" I asked it.

It spewed a gentle, pink mist from the blowhole on its snout. "Munna!" it cheered.

I petted her once more. "You're so cute!" I cried.

I looked up at the sky and noticed that it was getting darker by the minute. I looked at my Cross-Tranceiver. _5:30,_ it read. "I'd better be heading back," I told Munna. "I wish I could stay with you longer, but-"

Two Team Plasma grunts ran into the Dreamyard. "Give us the Munna and nobody gets hurt," one of them growled.

I backed up as they advanced towards me. I could feel Munna's body become tense and scared. It shoved its head into my chest, acting as if it would hide it from Team Plasma. "So _this _must by why you were so afraid earlier," I realized.

Team Plasma was gaining on me. I needed a plan, and fast.


	14. Tis Just a Flesh Wound

Without letting go of Munna for a second, I tried to take my backpack off (and with one hand, I must add, which is _not_ very easy-or fun-to do) as quickly as I could. I grabbed the first of my three Pokeballs that I could get a hold of and threw it in the air. Out came Delilah. _How did _I_ get so lucky,_ I thought sarcastically.

I zipped up my bag and slung it over my right shoulder. I then told Delilah in a hushed voice, "Okay, Team Plasma is back, N is gone, and this Munna's in trouble. Please cooperate with me."

She crossed her arms at me. "Well, look who needs my help iagain/i," she pointed out.

"Delilah!" I shouted.

"Fine. What do I need to do?"

As the Team Plasma grunts got closer, they slowly realized who I was. "You two stopped us at the Nacrene Museum!" one of them exclaimed.

The other one decided, "Looks like we have two prizes to claim for Team Plasma: one for our plot to liberate the world, and the other for revenge."

"Delilah, use Bli-" I began to command.

However, Delilah had other plans. Before I could even finish speaking, she summoned a Shadow Ball attack and shot it at the two grunts. She managed to knock both of them down. One of the two fled; the other simply stood up, shaking it off as if the attack left him unfazed. "You may have scared off my accomplice, but I don't give up that easily," announced the determined grunt.

He grew closer and closer to us, and I kept backing up until I was cornered in front of a huge pile of empty oil barrels. There was nowhere left to run; I was extremely nervous (and so was Munna), but Delilah couldn't be more confident. She then weilded another attack that I had never known that she could use: Thunderbolt. It shocked the grunt (almost to a crisp). By the time that the move was done, the grunt was practically living bacon. His hair stood upward, and his outfit was completely smoldered in ash. He coughed a few times, then told me, sticking his left index finger in my face as he did, "Just because you beat me now _doesn't_ mean that you've won this round, you...you _trainer_." (The way he said _trainer_ seemed to give the word a negative connotation.) Disgusted by the fact that he lost to my Froslass, he turned around and ran off, chanting, "Plasmaaaaa!"

I looked down at Munna, who was still curled up in my arms, shivering with fear. Delilah looked at it. "She'll be fine," Delilah diagnosed. "Just a little shell shocked is all."

"Thanks," I said to my Froslass. I sent her back to her Pokeball, which I put back into my bag right after. I looked at Munna. She looked up at me. "M-Munna?" she asked. (I assumed that meant, "_Are they gone? Am I safe now?"_)

I told her, "Don't worry; you have nothing to worry about. Team Plasma won't hurt you any more."

I held her face closed to mind and rubbed the two together. Munna spewed some more of her pink mist from her blowhole. This time, it sparkled like stars-something that made me think of the galaxies and the cosmos and other space-related objects. I had a feeling that she was happy-a feeling that, in turn, appeased me.

I sneaked a peek at my Cross-Tranceiver. _6:00_ was displayed on its screen. "Oh shoot!" I exclaimed. "August is waiting for me at the Pokemon Center!"

I put down Munna and said, "Stay out of trouble, little guy."

As I turned around and ran off, I heard her wimper, "Munna! Munna!"

The pink Pokemon scurried on over to me. "You-you want to join me?" I asked, surprised.

"Munna!" she hollered. (I assumed that meant, "Absolutely!")

I then pulled out a vacant Pokeball from my bag. I threw it at Munna, and, with a flash of red light, she entered its cold, metal interior. The ball jerked back and forth a few times before it stopped shaking, signaling that I had successfully caught Munna. I picked up the ball and looked at it. "I think I'll name you..." I said to the Pokeball, trying to think of a name. Once I had a name, I said, "Celeste. Your name shall be Celeste, because your mist reminds me of the night sky (regardless of the fact that it is pink in color)."

I released Munna again and greeted her with, "Hello, Celeste!"

She sat on top of my head and purred, "Mun!"

I let her stay up there as we wandered back to the Striaton Pokemon Center together.


	15. That Awkward Dinner Scene

I walked into the Pokemon Center at eight PM precisely. The first thing I saw as I walked in was August nervously pacing in front of the front desk. As soon as she heard the automatic doors of the Pokemon Center slide open, her head jerked in the direction of the entrance. She fixed her eyes on me. "You're two hours late!" she cried. "I was worried that Team Plasma kidnapped you or something!"

She ran over to me and gave me a huge hug. Celeste sniffed at August's blond hair. "Munna?" the Pokemon asked as August squeezed me.

My blond-headed friend let go of me and looked at Celeste carefully. "Since when did you get a Munna?" August asked me.

"Let me explain over dinner," I told her simply. "I saw a restaraunt on the way over here. Let's go there-my treat."

**-x-**

The restaraunt was small and empty. There were only a few tables that were taken, one of them belonging to August and I. We didn't get anything too elaborate: just a burger and a soda for each of us. As we ate our meals, August asked me, "So, what happened again exactly?"

I swallowed a bite of hamburger before I explained everything that happened today. I left the stuff out about N once more; I still wasn't ready to tell her about him yet. After August took a sip of her soda, she said, "So Team Plasma _almost_ kidnapped you? That's pretty intense. Sorry for getting all crabby about you being late. I just was kinda panicking over the fact that something had happened to you, especially after the whole Ghestis thing earlier."

"Perfectly fine," I said to accept her apology.

August looked a bit distracted by something that she was thinking about. She didn't want to say anything to me; instead, she just played with the ice cubes in her soda glass. "What?" I asked her.

"Nothing," was August's response.

I wasn't convinced. I raised an eyebrow and crossed my arms. "You expect me to believe that: _nothing?_ Sure doesn't seem like nothing."

"Well," she admitted, and rather shyly I must add, "I kinda saw you hanging out with some green-haired guy before. He seemed, well, kinda cute. Is he, um, your, um-"

"What?"

"Your boyfriend?"

I hesitated for a moment. "Boyfriend?" I denied. "Nonsense. He was just, uh, giving me directions at first. Then, we got into a conversation, and-"

"What did you talk about?" August was extremely curious now.

"Oh, nothing much...just about Pokemon and the like."

She echoed what I had said to her just moments earlier: "You expect me to believe that?"

I still didn't want to give her the full story yet. "It's really complicated. I mean, he's a boy, but not my boyfriend. I don't really consider him a friend. More like...an acquaintance, I guess. Like I said: it's _really_ complicated. I'm not really in the mood to try to explain it to you."

August rolled her eyes. "Okay. Whatever you say. He was kinda cute, though."

N's face appeared in my mind. "Yeah," I agreed, "he is pretty charming-inside _and_ out."

"Oooooh. Does somebody have a crush on the mystery guy?"

I said in a low voice, "Uh, kinda. Just do me a favor and don't tell my sister, okay."

"I'll try," she agreed, then giving me some sort of salute with her hand that reminded me of a salute that I've seen sailors gesture to each other.

I then thought about Munna for a minute. I didn't quite understand the whole "mist" thing yet. I figured that, if I were to ask anyone about it, it would be her. "Hey, August," I asked, "I was wondering...what's that pink mist stuff that Munna spit out? I mean, the Pokedex said that it spits it out after it eats pleasant dreams, but...what _is_ it exactly?"

With a bit of burger in her mouth, she said something that sounded like, "Dweemeest."

"What?" I said, trying not to laugh.

She swallowed her food. "Dream Mist. Munna are dream eaters. Once they take the dream out of the head of the person or Pokemon that they were preying on, Munna spew a mist from their blowhole that displays the dream that they ate. If the dream is a pleasant one, the mist is pink."

"What happens if they eat a bad dream?"

"Don't know. Never really felt comfortable letting my Pokemon munch on my head." She let out an awkward giggle.

We ate silently for a few minutes, not talking to each other because we couldn't really think of another topic to discuss. I then thought long and hard about the two moves that Delilah had used that day: Thunderbolt and Blizzard. Delilah usually wasn't the one for battling; she enjoyed to complain and annoy people more. (As much as I love her, it's true.) It would make sense that I didn't have knowledge of those two moves, considering that the only moves that I had seen Delilah do at home were the ones that she wanted to use. However, it was strange. _Why would she begin using these new moves all of a sudden?_ I thought. _Does she not trust me or something?_

I then thought about _when_ she had used those moves. Both times she had used those two moves, Team Plasma was threatening my security, along with the security of others. I crossed "she doesn't trust me" off of my mental list.

August poked my shoulder. "Cecilia?" she asked. "Cecilia, you okay?"

My mind returned from being lost in thought. "Yeah," I told her, "just thinking about something."

"What?"

"Nothing."

"It's about the green-haired kid, isn't it? You're thinking about him."

I didn't really know how to talk about the thoughts plaguing my mind at the moment, so I lied, "Y-yeah."

August squealed, "Awh! That's so cute!"

"Mhmm." I yawned. I was run-down from a long day. "Can we pay the check and leave? I'm getting really tired."

August nodded 'yes.' We did that and went back to the Pokemon Center for a good night's rest.


	16. I'm Gonna Give All My Secrets Away

It seemed like my dreams were having a re-run that night. I saw all three of my previous dreams mashed together into one conglomerate. I didn't roll out of bed at the sight of them like I did with my previous dream.

This time, I shot up and screamed, "Get out of my head!"

I blinked a few times before realizing that I was having a nightmare. I apparently woke up August, because she got up and moaned, "What is it _this_ time? That's, like, two in a row!"

"I wish I understood myself," I said. "I seriously do."

"Oh well. Let's try to get back to sleep. You have a gym battle at noon tommorrow. If anyone needs her rest, it's you. Good night." August threw the covers over her head and tried to go back to sleep.

"Good night." I followed her lead.

However, unlike past nights, the dreams continued. This time, my dream was completely different. Sadly, _different_ doesn't always mean _better_. This time, I saw a horrific vision. Ghestis' calloused face was cackling. His image had a harsh shadow to it. It was truly sinister looking, but the most intimidating part of the whole scene was when Zekrom became encircled with a harsh shock wave of electricity, and Reshiram became engulfed in a blast of fire at the same exact time.

But that's not the best part. Try guessing who was standing besides Reshiram.

It was N. I still didn't understand the connection between N and Reshiram, but I did remember what he said about wanting to befriend the graceful, legendary creature in an earlier dream.

Then, an image of my body similar to that of a hologram appeared in the dream. I felt like I was floating. No, I'm serious. I actually _felt_ myself floating within the dream, as if I was dreaming with my senses. "What...what _is_ this?" I asked myself silently.

"A dream," Ghestis said, acknowledging my existance in the vision, "that will help you make a decision in the future."

"What?" I asked, completely confused.

"Join us," he said with an evil glare, "or face the consequences."

I gasped at the options that he gave me. "You want me to _join_ Team Plasma, Ghestis? Never! I would ne-" I stopped for a moment, reprocessing the words that he had just said to me. "Wait a minute," I realized, "did you say _us_? Who else were you referring to?"

Ghestis didn't reply; he simply stood in his place, staring at me from below and cackling sinisterly. N, on the other hand, looked at me with his innocent, grey eyes. As he stared at me, I felt a surge of emotions race through my veins. However, his stare wasn't like Ghestis' from earlier that day; I only felt good intentions in N's stare. It was strangely solacing.

After that, my dream went black and finally came to a close.

**-x-**

August and I sat on a bench outside of the Striaton City Gym as we waited for the clock to strike noon. It was mostly sunny with a few wispy clouds mushrooming across the sky. In addition, there was a gentle breeze that swept across the city, gently rustling the bushes and making the grass elegantly toss and turn with the wind. "Seems like a nice day for a gym battle," August noted.

"Speaking of gym battles," I said, "what do I need to know about the gym leader here?"

August answered, "Well, first of all, there are three gym leaders: Cress, Chili, and Cilan. The trio specialize in water-types, fire-types, and grass-types, respectively. When you're gestured into the gym-which is, by the way, not a real restaurant-you're required to choose which one of the three you'd like to battle. It's a simple one-on-one battle, but don't get caught off guard."

"Why not?"

"Well, let me explain it like this. I-I haven't really told anyone about this before, but I had so much trouble defeating this gym. I think that I must've battled each one of the gym leaders at least twice until I realized what I was doing wrong: I was being too confident in myself and let my hubris get the best of me. I made so many foolish decisions in battle out of pride that it cost me the badge about six times. Each defeat was humiliating, but motivated me to work harder. Eventually, I worked out an organized battle strategy using my mistakes from past battles as a reference. The day after I comprised my strategy, I beat Cilan no problem and won the Trio Badge.

"I was too embarrassed to tell that story to anyone else. However, I'll trust that you'll keep a secret. Considering that I've gone through so many failing friendships throughout my lifetime, I feel like you're the only real friend that I've ever had."

I absorbed every word that August said, especially the last few sentences about why she trusted me. I thought about how I'd been hiding the truths about my meetings with N. I recalled all of the dreams that I never felt comfortable describing to her in detail.

Most of all, I felt guilty for not confiding in her like she had to me. I knew that I owed it to her to tell her everything, but it wasn't the right time for it yet. I decided to wait until sometime after the gym battle.

I looked at the digital display on my Cross-tranciever for the time. It was five before noon. August glanced at the screen of the video watch and said, "We'd better go and wait inside; the receptionist will call your name any minute now."


	17. Just Get On With It!

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **For the record, I'm pretty much making up the whole layout of the Striaton Gym. It was too boring-ish (to me) in the games, and I haven't watched much of the anime at all. Laugh at/ flame me and DIE._

* * *

><p>"Um, is somebody named Cecilia here? Cecilia, party of two?"<p>

I waved my arm in the air to notify the lady at the front desk that I was in attendance. She said into the intercom: "Cecilia, party of two, your table's ready."

August and I got up. The lady behind the desk grabbed a menu card for each of us and met us in the center of the room. She instructed, "Please follow me to your table."

The "waitress" began walking towards a set of sliding doors. We followed, and as we did, I whispered to August, "Wow. They sure do get into character here..."

"Yeah. It's kinda weird at first, I know," she explained as we continued to follow the lady. "I think the whole 'restaraunt theme' has to do with the fact that the leaders are Pokemon Connoisseurs."

I gaped. "T-they eat Pokemon?"

Yeah, that was probably the stupidest thing that I've ever said in my entire life. With that said, it was probably the stupidest thing that _anyone_ had ever said ever.

August slapped her face into her palm. She tried to act discouraged, but I could tell that she was about to burst out into laughter by the faint smile that was slowly growing across her face. "No," she stifled, ready to crack up any second, "they rate the compatibility between a trainer and his or her Pokemon."

"Oh," I understood, embarrassed.

We didn't talk until the "waitress" had brought us to an empty room with a well-sanded mahogany table and two matching chairs. On the table was an elegant, white tablecloth trimmed with lace; along with some white, linen napkins cocooning overly-polished silverware. It really set the atmosphere for the whole "connoisseur" thing.

On a more random note, there was a red, satin curtain with a golden rope attached to it. This acted for a backdrop for the otherwise dull, white-walled room, but I couldn't see any purpose for it being there.

August and I sat down, and we were given our menus. Headlining the menu-which was a cream-colored cardstock matted neatly onto a black, plastic backing-was the word _menu_ written in a fancy, curved font of some sort. The following three names were listed under it: Cress, Chili, and Cilan. The font for all three was generally of the same, simple type, but the color of the names varied for each: Cress' name was colored a cerulean blue, Chili's was colored a fiery red, and Cilan's was colored a springtime green.

"Here are our specials; I'll be back in a minute to take your order," she told us.

The "waitress" stepped out of the room for the moment. I had a feeling that she was listening in on August and I, probably because she needed a queue as to when she could return to our table.

"So," August asked me, "who do you think you're going to pick?"

I glanced at the menu carefully, trying to consider my options. I remembered what August had told me about the three leaders earlier: one was a fire-type user, one was a water-type user, and one was a grass-type user. The battle was a one-on-one, and I figured that meant that every choice I made would seriously impact the outcome of the battle.

I tried to recall some battle strategies and type advantages that my sister had taught me, but I couldn't remember them all. I knew that water beats fire, fire beats ice, electric beats water, and fire beats grass. Other than those four type advantages and disadvantages, my mind was blank. I tried to contact my sister for assistance via my Cross-transceiver, but the screen's display notified me that there was no signal in the room and that I couldn't make a call.

To put it bluntly, I was screwed unless I could think of something.

I thought of my options. I didn't have any Pokemon that could use water-type moves, and Delilah would not pair up nicely with any of his Pokemon, so battling Chili was out of the question. Delilah knew Thunderbolt, and Grace knew Shock Wave. That meant that Cress wasn't a bad option. I didn't know what moves my Munna could use, but I did know that Seattle, my Riolu, knew Blaze Kick. Therefore, I figured that Cilan wouldn't be a bad option either.

I didn't have a clue who to pick yet, but I had a feeling that the lady wasn't gonna wait all day for me to make a decision. I decided to consider which Pokemon to use instead, then decide based on that choice.

August tapped my shoulder and alerted me in a quiet, somewhat shaky voice, "Um, Cecilia, not to be rude or pushy or anything, but, um, they're going to kick us out sooner or later if you don't, um, decide soon."

I nodded my head. "Sorry this is taking so long," I apologized.

"No," she said, "it's fine. It took me a while my first time around, too."

I then wondered, "C-can you battle all three of them? I'm bad at making decisions."

"I don't know," she answered. "That's a stretch, though. You lose to one, you lose the badge! Why don't we try to choose one, hm?"

We discussed it, and then the "waitress" returned from afar. "So," she asked, somewhat irritated at how long she was left waiting, "have you _finally_ made your decision?"

I could have sworn that a hushed voice scolded her from somewhere: "Don't be rude to the customers, Alice!"

"Yes," I said, "my decision is Cress."

"Awh, _come on! _That's, like, the third one this-" another masqueraded voice said before a loud _shh!_ cut him off.

"Very well," Alice said. "And here we go. Woo."

"More enthusiasm, Alice!" another hushed voice urged. "Apathy makes us look bad!"

I then heard a sigh and another _shh!_. I didn't know where these voices and sounds were emanating from, but I had a feeling that they were coming from the same place.

Alice walked over to the gold rope and pulled it. Behind it was a brightly-lit battlefield, with three almost-identical figures posing in the center. On the left was a blue-haired kid with his arms folded and his posture straight and perfect. He smiled faintly, but otherwise...well, it's not that he didn't show emotion; he did, but he seemed very relaxed and focused. There was a green-haired kid on the opposite side with a smile brighter than any other I had seen before. He held his wrists behind his back and bowed to me respectfully. Lastly, the focal point of the three was a red-haired kid that was making some awkward-looking rock star pose. He seemed pompous and overly energetic.

"Can we stop posing now?" the red-haired one asked through his teeth, rolling his eyes to look at his blue-haired brother, and then to his green-haired brother.

The green-haired one took one of his hands out from behind his back and slapped the red-haired one on the shoulder. "OW!" the red-haired one cried.

It was then that I figured that this was where the voices were coming from earlier.

"Cecilia and friend, these are the three leaders: Cress, Chili, and Cilan, respectively," Alice introduced.

"Hello," Cress greeted in a relaxed voice.

"Welcome!" Cilan also greeted, except in a more excited voice.

"Took you long enough," Chili muttered. Cilan slapped him again.

"Cress, here's your challenger: Cecilia of..." As Alice introduced me to the leaders in a monotone voice, she stopped in the middle of her sentence to look at a flash card that was in her hand. "Snowpoint City, sister of gym leader Candice."

"Did they have to announce that?" I whispered to August. "As much as I love being related to a gym leader, that's a bit...personal, so to say. I would've told them myself if I wanted to. How did they find out anyhow?"

Alice gave me a sneer that said, _Serves you right for taking your sweet, old time, moron._

"Maybe Alice looked it up while she was waiting," August guessed. "You did spend thirty minutes deciding on who to battle anyhow."

"It was that long?" I asked in shock.

"Candice?" Chili asked. "I dated her once, but she was too cool for me, so I-" He stopped talking when Cilan elbowed him.

"No you _didn't_," I pointed out.

"Sure," he replied, "think what you wanna think."

I rolled my eyes. _I'd love to see Delilah's reaction to this guy_, I thought. _That would probably be hysterical!_

"M'kay," Alice said to the gym leaders, "that's it. I can go on break, now, right?"

"Only if you promise to be less rude to the customers next time around," Cilan bargained.

Alice nodded her head and left as she muttered some cross words under her breath.

"Sorry about her," Cilan apologized. "She's new."

"Figured."

Cress stepped up. "Well, you chose to battle me. Let's go. I'm looking forward to challenging you. I don't think we've ever had anyone related to a gym leader before. This should be interesting. You might be the first formidable opponent I've ever challenged."


	18. SHOCKING, Isn't It?

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:** _Thank you, fellow readers and authors, for helping _Long Division_ surpass one thousand hits! ^_^ I wouldn't have done it without you all. ^3^ Love ya!_

* * *

><p>I stood on a platform on the right-hand side of the battlefield, clenching my teeth and trembling nervously as I stared down my opponent on the opposite end of the field. On the left-hand side, Cress stood on his platform. He stood with the same confident posture and the same casual pose as earlier. He clutched a sole Pokeball in his hand.<p>

The center of the field was comprised of rocky terrain. The entire arena was outlined with space for bystanders to observe. Chili stood with his back against the southern wall, staring at his brother Cress with envy. Cilan stood on a spot right outside of the battlefield. He was centered between the two of us, ready to coach the battle we were about to have. Behind me, on the sidelines, stood August, readily waiting to watch my gym battle. She seemed nervous. I guessed that was because she didn't want to see me making the same mistakes that she made the last few times she had battled here.

"So," Cress asked as he tapped his foot semi-impatiently, "are you ready or what?"

I gulped and took my bag off of my back. I pulled Grace's Ultra Ball out of my bag and placed the bag on the surface of the platform. "Mhm," I confirmed.

_Oh Arceus, _I thought nervously. _I sure hope I don't screw up..._

"This will be a one-on-one Pokemon battle. Defeat my Pokemon and win the Trio Badge. It's that simple, if you think about it like that." Cress showed me a faint smile before tossing his Pokeball into the air. "Panpour, grace the stage!" he bellowed, still confident like he was earlier.

A small, blue, monkey-like Pokemon stood on Cress' end of the field. It seemed as calm and collective as its trainer. I pulled out my Pokedex to record its data for my research, but I didn't really absorb what the contraption was saying to me. I practically blanked out in fear at that moment, thinking, _Oh my Arceus, this is rather nerve wracking..._

I threw the Ultra Ball into the air. "Grace, let's go!" I chanted, my voice a bit shaky.

_Here we go,_ I thought as I looked at my opulent Gardevoir posing gracefully in front of me. _My first _legit_ gym battle..._

"A Gardevoir! How intriguing; I've never seen one up close before!" Cilan noted excitably.

"Why don't you take the first move," Cress gestured. "Ladies first."

I blushed. Once I did so, I heard August's voice scolding me in my mind: _Don't let him distract you! Remember: focus!_

I shook my head a few times and reminded myself to stay in the zone. "Thank you," I said as I pondered my first move.

I knew that Grace knew the following moves: Shock Wave, Psychic, Calm Mind, and Giga Impact. I figured that Shock Wave was a good place to start, considering the type advantage I would have with it. "Grace," I commanded, "use Shock Wave!"

My psychic-type nodded in understanding and put her hands together. She quickly charged up her hands until they pulsed with electric energy. She then pointed her clasped hands at Panpour and shot a beam of electricity at it.

"Panpour, dodge it!" Cress instructed.

And, indeed, it did as he said. The water-type jumped before the Shock Wave could hit it, and the attack ended up smashing into the wall instead.

_Crap, _I thought. _Crap, crap, crap._

"Really?" Cress asked. "_That_ was your first move? It may have been a strategic one, but I've seen first moves like that before. Panpour, use Water Gun!"

The focused, blue Pokemon ran up to Grace and used Water Gun on her. Grace was in somewhat of a state of shock, but she tried to shield herself from the attack by crossing her white arms in front of her face. She did, indeed, get hit by the attack, but it didn't seem to do too much damage to her. "Phew," I sighed with relief.

I then thought about the next attack. _Should I have her use Calm Mind to help her focus,_ I thought in attempts to strategically plot out the next few moves, _then have her use Psychic on Panpour, or should I have her try Shock Wave again?_

Cress tapped his foot impatiently. Chili sneered at me. Cilan simply observed me in my thinking state, as if he was interested in what I decided to do next._ For three brothers_, I thought, _they seem to have _nothing_ in common._

I decided to go with the Calm Mind and Psychic combination. "Grace," I commanded, "use Calm Mind!"

My Gardevoir stood frozen in place. Her body went from tense to relaxed. She assumed a cross-legged yoga stance and began to float in mid air as she began to meditate and empty her mind of all of her stress. She seemed to glow with a weak, purple aura as she did so.

"Panpour, use Bite!"

Cress' Pokemon began sprinting towards Grace. As soon as he got close enough, her eyes shot open. I then called to her, "Now, use Psychic!"

She used her brain power to levitate the Panpour in mid air. The blue Pokemon struggled to break free of the move's grasp. Grace focused all of her attention on the Panpour; she was determined not to let it down until I gave her the next command. "Okay, Grace, now..." I said, trying to think of an impromptu instruction for my Pokemon. "...use...no, just toss it against a rock or something!"

I dug my face into my head. _Real professional,_ I thought.

Grace still listened; she chucked Panpour into a nearby boulder with her Psychic attack. It did damage, no doubt about that. However, the Pokemon had gotten back on its feet. It looked like its physical appearance had weakened, but its confident attitude had failed to subside. It retracted the tips of its little paws into his palm, forming a fist in both hands. It wasn't going to give up that easy.

"Nice strategy, but we're not close to finished yet," Cress noted. "Now, Panpour, use Water Gun on that rock!"

He pointed to one specific boulder. It seemed to be a random choice, but I figured that he had some sort of a strategy up his sleeve. The Panpour obeyed its trainer's commands and directed its Water Gun attack towards the boulder. A powerful gush of water slammed onto the rock and ricocheted off of its surface, hitting another rock...and another rock...and another rock.

I didn't see where he was going with this, but I warned Grace, "Keep on your-"

I stopped speaking for a second. Out of the corner of my eye, in an isolated corner of the arena, I saw a familiar face staring me down in disdain.

It was N-I was sure of it. My mouth gaped at the sight. His presence distracted me. I focused my attention on him as I tried to figure out why on Earth he would watch me battle. I assumed that he disliked the whole "trainers catching Pokemon in Pokeballs" thing (as if he hadn't given me enough hints by then), so I figured that he was there to try to convince me to stop battling.

I was so distracted by N that the Water Gun attack ricocheted off of a specific boulder, causing the attack to hit Grace in return. She was growing weak-I could tell.

August noticed that something was distracting me, although I don't think that she knew that it was N that was compelling me to be so off guard. To encourage me, she yelled at me, "Don't be thrown off guard! That's what killed me those six or seven times!"

Cress shifted his body to the left so he could get a better view at August. "I remember you," he pointed out, directing his voice at her. "I thought that you looked familiar, but I wasn't quite sure of it until now. You were the chick who lost to us all those times before you won the badge." Cress then focused his attention back on me, telling me, "You're traveling with such a weak trainer? No wonder why you're losing." He laughed with pity for me.

I put my hands on my hips and glared at him angrily. "Oh no you _didn't_! Grace, grab onto Panpour!"

She obeyed commands and slid onto the ground, gliding on the rough terrain towards Panpour and grabbing its stubby legs. It tried to shake her loose, but her grasp was too strong. I knew that Grace wouldn't hold up for too much longer, so I needed to move fast. "Shock Wave, let's go!" I instructed next.

My Gardevoir listened and sent a surge of electricity coursing through the water-type's body. (I could've sworn that its petite body lit up as it was being shocked by the attack, too.) Once she finished the move, she let go of the Pokemon's legs and weakly got up. The psychic-type's body wearily swayed back and forth, but she still had enough strength to stand. _I sure hope that she can pull through_, I hoped. _Arceus, I feel terrible for putting her through this, now...or is that just N getting to me again?_

I looked back to where N was standing earlier. He was gone without a trace, and I was dumbfounded. "But..." I silently muttered to myself, "...where could he have gone?"

While I was distracted, Cilan called out, "Cress' Panpour is unable to battle. The winner is the opponent: Cecilia of Snowpoint City!"

Cress bowed his head with respect. "I guess you _do _have what it takes to be a winner," he admitted. "Sorry about how I misjudged you earlier."

"Thanks, I guess," I responded, "but 'sorry' doesn't cut it! August helped prepare me for this battle. She's got six of the eight badges, too, by the way, so what exactly makes her a _loser?_ And, furthermore-"

"Alright, I get it," he understood, somewhat laughing as he spoke. He leaned to his left again and looked at August in the eye. "I guess that I owe _you_ an apology as well," he said to her.

She turned her back to him. I didn't blame her; he _was_ rather rude to August.

Chili left the room momentarily and returned with a wooden tray with a blue, satin cushion on top of it. He held the tray out to his brother Cilan, who took something off of the top of the cushion. The green-haired brother quickly polished the trinket with his shirt and then scurried over to my platform. He put the object in my hands and said, "This is the Trio Badge. Now, you have proof that you defeated the Striaton City Gym! Keep this in a safe place, or else you'll be a badge short when it comes to facing the Pokemon League.

You _are_ planning on facing the Pokemon League, right?"

"Uh, I..." I stuttered, not quite sure of my answer, "...I...I haven't quite considered that yet."

He pat me on the back. "I think you should consider it. That was quite a comeback. You have potential, kid."

"Don't call me that," I requested.

"You got it..." he replied. Cilan began to walk away. As he headed back to the back center corner of the gym to meet up with his brothers, he halted, refusing to move an inch. Without turning around to face me, he said, "...kid."

He continued walking away, and I stuck my tongue out at him while his back was still turned. I then looked at the badge that the leader placed in my hands. Its shape was rimmed with gold, and there were three kites lined up in the center. On top was a blue kite, in the middle was a red kite, and on the bottom was a green kite. It gleamed in the bright lights of the arena, and it was so shiny that I could see my reflection in it.

I went to put it next to my Basic Badge in my bag, when Chili noticed me doing so out of the corner of his eye. "Whoa, whoa, whoa," he halted as he ran up to me. "Don't tell me that you don't have a badge case."

"Alright," I said to appease him, "I have a badge case."

"You're lying," he noted. "No badge case? You must be one new trainer to not have one. Hold on; I'll be right back."

Before he could hop off the platform and get a badge case from another part of the building, Cress had already left the room and come back with a brand-new case. "Awh, come on, man!" Chili cried out. "I could've done that myself!"

"Really, Chili?" Cress said in his usual relaxed voice. "_Really?_"

Chili began yelling at Cress in anger. I don't feel like it's necessary for me to explain that brouhaha in detail.

I (eventually) got my badge case and was able to leave the gym a winner. I felt like I had truly deserved the Trio Badge, mostly because I actually got to _work _for it on my own. I saw it as a milestone in my growth as a trainer, rather than a scientist.

On another note, I felt like I was neglecting my scientific research. It was a fact that bothered me, considering that I felt like I was letting Juniper down by doing so. However, I knew that I was listening to the professor's advice; she told me to try to enjoy myself, and I was.

**-x-**

After we left the gym, we took a brief lunch break and then set off again. We were heading back to Castelia City-the place where August and I first met, and the place where my Unovan journey began. As we journeyed back to the beginning, I thought of all of the memories that I had already had in Unova, and I was surprised by how many I had! So much had happened to me in that first week that it wasn't even funny. I actually had trouble believing that I had been traveling for so long already, considering that each moment seemed to have come and gone within seconds rather than days.

I was about two weeks into my journey when we made it back to Castelia. The first thing I did was breathe in the salty sea air. I then looked around at my surroundings; everything was as I remembered it to be, with the exception of one thing: _me. _Breathing in the fresh air by the docks made me think about how I had changed ever-so quickly while being in Unova. Of course, there was the fact that I didn't start having unusual dreams until I came to Unova. However, that wasn't the only think that I knew had changed about me. I was slowly learning about who I wanted to be: a gym leader, like my sister. I probably would have never dreamt of that goal if it weren't for the journey. Heck, I probably would have been sitting at home at that moment, observing my sister's battles or training with my sister.

"Cecilia," August said, tapping my shoulder in attempts to return me to reality, "we should stop by the Pokemon Center first and heal our Pokemon. We haven't seen a Pokemon Center since Nacrene City."

"You go ahead," I said, still taking in the relaxing scent of the ocean. "I think I'm going to hang out by the docks for a while."

August nodded her head in agreement and walked away. I then headed for the docks.

Once I got there, I stood near the closest railing and rested my arms on it. I took a deep sigh and closed my eyes. The warmth of the sun was beating down on me, but I didn't mind. I felt completely at peace with my inner self.


	19. Scene, But Not Heard

After about thirty minutes of quietly imbibing the salty scent of the ocean and the warming beams of the sun, a voice asked me, "Mind if I join you?"

I looked up and saw N. His stormy grey eyes were staring out into the ocean longingly. He was thinking about something-that I knew for sure. However, I wondered what he was thinking about. "Hello, N," I greeted. "So, we meet again."

He didn't say anything; his mind must've been too preoccupied for him to zero in on what I was saying.

I glanced at him while he mused about the topic that was invading his mind. "You seem very...distracted today," I pointed out.

He shook his head a few times, probably to snap himself back into reality. "Sorry," he apologized. "I came here to clear my plagued mind. The sounds of the waves and the chirping Pidove circling overhead both, in tangent, help me to relax. That's what I love about Castelia City."

I remembered Sinnoh for a moment. A few years prior, my family took a vacation to Canalave City. It was very much like Castelia, except smaller and more industrialized. However, I remember how absorbing the sights of the ocean there pacified my worries-much in the same manner that the Castelia seascape was doing the same thing.

I sighed. "You seem a bit out of sorts, too," he noted.

"Just...just thinking about home," I put it simply.

"Right, you're a foreigner. Sinnoh, right? That was your home region."

_He remembered!_ I thought. "Yes," I confirmed, "my sister is the gym leader in Snowpoint City."

I could tell that N was trying to repress the disgusted look that was fighting to come across his face once I said _gym leader_, but it wasn't working too well for him.

"Why does the fact that my sister's a gym leader bother you?" I asked him, itching to know why. "I mean, I _know_ that you were watching my gym battle with Cress a few days back. You didn't seem to be so thrilled with the battle. What is it with you and gym leaders?"

He continued to fix his eyes onto the ocean. As he did, he answered, "Pokemon deserve a better fate than what they have now. That's why I don't like gym battles, let alone Pokemon battles in general."

I cocked my head to the side in confusion. "Elaborate, please?"

"All Pokemon seem to do is battle for the satisfaction of their trainers. They come out of their Pokeballs, energetic and motivated, only to be beaten down by another Pokemon until it or the opponent becomes too weak to battle. After that, both Pokemon, regardless of whether they won or lost, return to their Pokeballs in a weakened state. Now, tell me, does that sound fair to you?"

I didn't say anything.

"Humans misuse their Pokemon as tools," N continued. "It's tyranny, I tell you!

However...you and your Pokemon seem to share a special bond that I've never seen before. Most of the Pokemon that I've seen throughout the course of my lifetime were abused or neglected. Yours...it's incredible how well they get along with you. Grace didn't seem to mind you at our first encounter, and Delilah, deep down inside, loves and respects you, although she might not always show it. I have yet to meet your other Pokemon, but I bet that they love you no matter what."

I thought about all of my Pokemon for a second: he already had met Grace and Delilah, but he still hadn't met Seattle or Celeste.

_Celeste_, I thought carefully. I remembered how N didn't want me to catch her. Yet, after he departed and after Team Plasma came and left, I did catch her. I felt somewhat guilty for neglecting N's request...but, then again, the Munna _wanted _to join me.

Still, I felt like I had to tell N about it. "Uh, about my Pokemon-"

I explained everything that had happened to me after he had left the Dreamyard: Team Plasma raiding me, Delilah's Thunderbolt, how Celeste wanted to be my friend. "So...she actually _wanted_ to join you?" he asked, baffled by the thought. "I've never even heard of such an occurrence! I must say that you're a rare trainer indeed."

"I'm hardly even a trainer," I admitted modestly. "I mean, you haven't seen my sister battle."

"I'm not applauding your battle strategies; I'm applauding your compassion towards your Pokemon."

"What, and you think that _my sister _lacks compassion? How in the name of Arceus would you know what my sister's like? You haven't even met her before! I mean, haven't you ever learned not to judge a book by its cover? Just because she's a gym leader _doesn't_ make her a villain."

"In my eyes, I see it that way. Her poor Pokemon must be exhausted from all of the battling and training that they go through each day!"

"UGH!" I groaned loudly. "You're _so_ stereotypical! I thought that you were better mannered than that."

I began to stomp away from N furiously. I looked back for only a minute as I did. N's face was in a state of shock, and his expression implied that he was thinking, _What the Arceus did I do?_

Once my head pivoted back into its normal position, I continued stomping away from N in a burst of anger. As I tried to find my way to the Pokemon center, I thought repetitively about how I never wanted to see N's face again after that incident; however, my anger soon subsided after I had let it pour from me like hot steam from a tea kettle. I then reprocessed everything that N had told me earlier as I wandered aimlessly to the Pokemon Center. Everything he was saying was starting to make sense-just barely, but it was making sense. I realized that many Pokemon are forced to travel with selfish and unruly trainers. I knew that he was correct in saying that gym leader's Pokemon go through a lot more strenuous work than the Pokemon of the average trainer.

I still didn't know where he was getting at this. He was just so obsessed with reiterating his hatred for Pokeballs and gym leaders and the like.

If there was anything that I was sure about, it was that N was hiding something bigger from me-something that went above and beyond his rancor.


	20. Ooh, Honey Honey

"You sure look exhausted," August realized after I finally found my way to the Pokemon Center that evening. "I'm guessing you got lost."

I nodded my head. "Just like the last time I was here," I told her. "I couldn't find my way around _then_, and I still can't find my way around _now_."

She giggled. "Bad sense of direction?"

"_Very_." And it was true; I always got lost, regardless of whether I had a map in my possession or not. However, being as useless as a broken compass has had its advantages. In fact, I would have never met Seattle if I hadn't gotten lost in the woods on the outskirts of Snowpoint one day. (However, that's a story for another time.) "I tend to get lost a lot."

"I see. Well, it's getting late. I mean, it's already six! You've been lost a while, so lets get some dinner and call it a night, okay?"

"Mhm."

We did exactly what August had suggested. The next morning, she took me to the Castelia City Gym. On the outside, it looked like a skyscraper with the Unova Pokemon League logo embellished on top. However, the interior was rather peculiar and different; it was designed to look like a Combee hive, with each chamber of the gym modeled after the honeycombs in a hive. There was also a huge slab of honey in front of us. It appeared to be a solid wall in my mind, but August explained, "You see, this gym is almost like a fragrant puzzle. You need to jump through the honey walls to get to Burgh, the bug-type leader, but there's a catch: some of these passageways are blocked off, and can only be opened by pressing the correct button."

"Oh," I remarked sarcastically, "that sounds like fun."

"It's actually a lot of fun!" she exclaimed. "Don't worry; it'll warm up to you after a while.

Now, regarding the actual gym battle...It's a three-on-three battle. His Pokemon are Whirlipede, a bug and poison type; Leavanny, a bug and grass type; and...uh...what was it again? Oh, right! The other's Dwebble, a rock and bug type. Really, any of your Pokemon would be a fine match for this battle. Delilah knows ice-type moves, which would be super effective against Whirlipede and Leavanny; your Riolu...you said that she knows Blaze Kick, right?"

"Yeah," I confirmed.

"Okay, so your Riolu's Blaze Kick would be a good advantage towards Leavanny. The only thing is, fighting-type moves don't do much damage to Leavanny, so maybe your Rilou would be a good last resort Pokemon. But, then again, using her would be a good way to throw Burgh off-guard..."

"August," I said.

"Yeah?"

"You're over-thinking this. Besides, I need to work on my own battle strategies _eventually_."

"Oh. Guess you're right. Heheh. Sorry."

"It's okay. Just be careful with Dwebble-it almost cost me that badge the first time around."

"M'kay. Let's go!"

Pent up with excitement and energy, I ran through the first honey wall. As I slid through, my figure felt like it was swimming in a pool, but not really going anywhere. The honey didn't exactly feel thick and slimy; it had a consistency similar to gelatin-smooth and stable. I popped out the other end, and all I saw was a room somewhat similar to the entrance. It was shaped like an octagon and had two exits branching out from opposite ends of the room. In the center of the back wall of the octagon was another gelatinous wall, except this one was heavily guarded with steel doors.

August popped out of the honey wall after me. She collected herself quickly and looked around. After a few mere seconds, she announced, "OOH! I remember this room. Uh, follow me! I'll get us to the right button."

So, I trailed behind August. She led me into the eastern room. It appeared to be much bigger than the previous room, considering that it was the size of two of the octagon-shaped rooms. August scurried into the room's extension and pressed the button that was tucked away in there. I heard a loud shifting noise come from afar. "That was _most likely_ the steel wall guarding the next honey passageway-the one that you just saw in the other room," she guessed.

"_Most likely?" _I shuddered to ask.

"Well...at least I _think _that it's the right room."

I sighed and we returned to back where we started. August was right: the door that shifted was the same one that I had seen in the first room of the gym. Together, we jumped through the thick slab of honey. Once we both got up and looked around, August had an epiphany: "Here, let me guide you through; you have no sense of direction-"

"_Hey_!"

"(Well, it's true.)"

"Guess you're right about that..."

"-and I'm pretty sure that I remember where the other buttons are. Just follow me!"

So I did. I followed her through every chamber of Burgh's "hive." Before we knew it, we had found our way to the heart of the gym. We saw a battlefield surrounded by luscious grass, healthy shrubbery, and decent-sized trees that seemed like they could explode through the ceiling any second _because _they were so tall. In the center of the basic, leveled playing field was a young man. His hair was somewhat a golden brown that was wavy and extended a little bit past his ears. His eyes were as green as a Metapod's chrysalis. His skin was pale, and his body rather thin. He wore a three-quarter sleeves lime green v-neck that was layered with a white shirt underneath. A pink scarf-which matched in harmony with his pink-and-purple-and-green striped pants-was wrapped around his neck carefully. He also wore a belt that had a buckle that was designed to look like what seemed to be like the contour of a Beautifly. He had a large sketchbook cradled in one arm, and a top-quality graphite pencil fretted in the hand of the opposite arm.

He looked up at us for only a mere moment, then stopped what he was drawing to flip to another page in his sketchbook. He held the pencil out in front of him as he carefully scrutinized August and I. He then began to draw something else. "Excuse me, uh, gym leader Burgh, but-"

"Don't move for a second!" he exclaimed. "It's not every day that an old challenger comes back for a rematch!"

"But," August said, "I'm not here to battle you this time. I mean, it's nice that you remembered me and all, but-"

"And DONE!" Burgh cheered. We hadn't even been there for a minute, and he had already finished a basic sketch of August and I, which he held up for us to see.

"Wow," I said with awe as I observed the drawing. Although it was a bit messy and hard to see from the distance August and I were from him, the picture looked impressive. I actually envied his drawing skills, to be honest. "That's incredible!"

"Thank you, love," he responded kindly. He then got up from his spot in the middle of the arena and walked over to the two of us. He looked at us carefully. "So, if _you're_ not challenging me to a rematch..." he comprehended, pointing at August as he did. He then focused his attention on me. "...then that must mean that _you _are my new challenger. Welcome!"

I bowed in respect. "Thank you, sir," I said respectfully.

"Don't call me _sir_," he insisted. "Last time _I _checked, I wasn't my father. As for the battle, let's go! I've been hoping that a trainer would come soon and pose as a muse for my next work. Even the best artists get artist's block sometimes."


	21. One Down, Two Out

I stood on one side of the field, and Burgh on the other. Standard procedures. Our ref for the battle, who stood in the usual place equally in between the leader and I, was August. "This battle is a three-on-three battle between Cecilia and the gym leader Burgh," August announced. I noticed that one of Burgh's eyebrows raised at the sound of my name, as if it rang a bell. "The trainer who succeeds in knocking out their opponent's three Pokemon is to be deemed the winner."

I tightly clutched Grace's Pokeball in my right hand. I decided to pick her for this battle because she was the most relaxed and focused of my three Pokemon. (Riolu was rather timid, and Delilah was rather...Delilah.) I was nervous, no doubt about that. You'd think that practically being given one badge and successfully winning another would have been a boost to my self-esteem, but it just wasn't enough. I still hadn't convinced myself that I was a decent trainer.

Burgh had his Pokeball firmly grasped in his hand. He was ready to battle. He seemed...enlightened, I suppose; he didn't seem to be overly serious about battling, but he didn't appear to be overly relaxed and careless either.

We both waited for August to officially begin the battle. Burgh stared at me, mostly focusing his attention on my Pokeball and who I'd send out of it. I didn't know if he was trying to figure out who I was going to call to battle for art reasons or for battle reasons, but it somewhat creeped me out.

After much silence, August finally called out, "Let the battle commence!"

With a flamboyant toss of his arm, Burgh sent out his Pokemon: a purple bug-type with a body that was coiled into a ball. I quickly whisked my Pokedex out of my bag and scanned the Pokemon. The contraption said in its usual robotic voice, _"Whirlipede: the Curlipede Pokemon. It is usually motionless, but when attacked, it rotates at high speed and then crashes into its opponent."_

_Gotta be careful with this one,_ I thought.

I then threw Grace's Pokeball in the air. Out came my usual graceful Gardevoir, poised ever-so elegantly, but ready to battle like never before. It was almost as if the previous gym battle gave her a surge of sureness and strength-something I knew I was lacking at that very moment.

Burgh found her to be extremely intriguing. I could tell that he wanted to pull out his sketch pad and draw her right then and there, but he knew that the battle came first. His voice filled with amazement, he told me, "Ah! A Gardevoir! How rare and interesting! I'm assuming that you're a foreigner, then, Cecilia."

"Yeah," was my response.

"Well, I'll let you make the first move," Burgh offered. "Dazzle me with your Pokemon's stunning attacks!"

I thought long and hard for a moment. _What type is Whirlipede again? August mentioned it before, but...agh! It was bug and...bug and..._

Out of nowhere, my mouth suddenly blabbered out the following command: "Grace, use Psychic!"

Using the attack, Grace used her impeccable mental capabilities to levitate the curled-up Pokemon in the air. It seemed to be tormenting the poor thing, to the point where it was violently spinning in circles in mid-air in desperate and infuriated attempts to escape. To add to that, the attack was doing its usual damage to the Pokemon.

However, I didn't know what to do next. _Giga Impact?_ I thought. _No, too soon in the battle for that. Shock Wave? I don't know; maybe. Calm Mind...well, I don't think she can get any more relaxed and focused at the moment. So...guess Shock Wave it is. _"Grace, send a Shock Wave attack through the Psychic field surrounding Whirlipede!"

She mimicked my commands, and the strategy seemed to work...somewhat. The Shock Wave attack wasn't strong enough to bring down Whilipede, not to mention too weak to even do enough damage. Then again, the battle had just begun. Once Grace released her grasp on Whirlipede, sending it into the ground, the opponent's Pokemon braced itself for a ferocious attack. Burgh pulled a graphite pencil out of his pocket and pointed it at Whirlipede. "Be a dear and use Bug Bite!" he commanded in an energetic yet mellow voice.

The Pokemon unraveled itself and pounced at Grace. Once it was on top of her, it began nipping at her arms and cheeks. It was doing an incredible amount of damage for some reason, and I began to panic. August seemed to notice my concern. She yelled out, "Grace is weak to bug-type moves like Bug Bite! Did I forget to mention that?"

"Yes, you forgot!" I answered. "It would've been helpful if you had told me _before_ the battle, though!"

"Sorry!" she apologized.

Once Whirlipede let go of Grace's body, it curled back up into it's little wheel-like form. My Pokemon looked rather frazzled. "Grace, use Calm Mind!" I commanded, hoping that it would helpher relax and regain her focus.

The psychic-type used that moment to keep her head in the game. She meditated in mid-air while Burgh was planning his next move. Sooner than I had hoped, Burgh commanded, pointing his pencil at his Pokemon like before, "Now, Poison Tail!"

"What?" I shrieked. _But, _I thought, _aren't Seviper the only ones who can learn that move?_

The attack knocked Grace to the ground. She was weak, and it was no surprise. The attack had poisoned her, and she was in serious pain-pain which I could feel as well, oddly enough.

My blood was coursing through my body rapidly. My heart beat so fast that it felt like it was about to burst out of my chest. At that moment, I knew that I wasn't prepared enough for this battle; there were just too many things that I didn't know-so many things that would make me a much stronger trainer if I was better informed. However, I was still learning and lacking experience-unlike August, who seemed extremely experienced.

Speaking of August, she seemed to notice my state of panic. "Cecilia, remember to _relax_!" she reminded me.

I took a few deep breaths. _In, out_, I thought incessantly as I inhaled and exhaled. _Happy thoughts. Think happy-_

I saw him again. N. He was isolated in the back-right corner of the room, like at the Striaton Gym. He didn't seem happy...but I mulled over the fact that he possibly was supporting me...

_...or is he here to distract me?_ I wondered. I shook my head. _No,_ I tried to convince myself. _That's not right. Not in the least. Or...could he? No. No. No. _I shook my head in disbelief once more. _Try to ignore him, Cecilia. He's becoming too much of a distraction._

August couldn't decipher what was ailing me. "Cecilia?" she called out, "Cecilia! Snap out of it, whatever _it_ is! Focus! You can do it! You can-"

She stopped once Burgh called out, "Now, let's finish this work of art with Pursuit!"

The Curlipede Pokemon spun rapidly in place, ramming into Grace with great force. It knocked her across the battlefield, almost causing her to slide onto my feet. She was close enough to me, however, for me to notice how hurt she was.

A sharp pain jabbed me in the gut and shot streams of agony throughout my entire body. I had no idea what was going on, but I had inferred something about it:

_Maybe...maybe we share a deeper psychic connection than we have hoped for._

Grace began to sob, and I mimicked the action-this time by choice. _"Cece," _my friend asked me telepathically, _"are you okay?"_

"A better question is," I responded in question form, "are _you_ okay?"

Grace's head lifted for a brief moment, then dropped to the ground. A throbbing headache occurred on the left side of my skull. My entire body began to ache. Before I returned her to her Ultra Ball, I began to question how severe her injuries were.

Once the Gardevoir was in its place, I called to Burgh, "W-wait! Time out!"

He raised an eyebrow. "Well," he said, "if you must."

With a frenzied gesture of my hand, I motioned August to come over to me. "Please," I requested, worried about the safety of both my psychic-type and myself, "_please_ take her to the Pokemon Center. She's never been hurt this bad before."

August nodded her head in understanding and agreed: "I saw that. She was badly poisoned _and_ attacked by a bug-type and a dark-type move. Oftentimes, that means bad news for any psychic-type. I'll take her to the Pokemon Center right-"

The pain in my gut continued, growing increasingly worse as each moment passed. I wrapped my arms around the pain-stricken area and collapsed to my knees. "_Hurry_," I urged in a weak voice.

Everything after that went black.


	22. She's ALIIIIIVEEEEE!

"Cecilia?" a voice said to me. "Cecilia? Are you alive?" A pause. His voice was then directed to someone else, although my vision was completely impaired during the conversation. "Don't just stand there; help me save her!"

"You're the one who actually_ sees_ something in this girl, not me," the other voice responded. "I have no reason to care."

"You heartless monster!"

A quarrel between the two voices broke out. I couldn't make out the voices, but I knew that they sounded familiar...

...too familiar.

I tried to open my eyes, but I couldn't. _I must be dreaming again_, I thought.

"Ghetsis, I don't care what you think about her!" the voice of the first person said, revealing that the second person in the conversation must have been Ghetsis of Team Plasma. "She's _the one._ Without her, our plan is null and void!"

"No!" Ghetsis objected. "With her, our plan is ruined! She would most likely try to stop you, regardless of whether or not she might actually _like_ you. That's why I needed to magnify the power of her telepathic bond with her Gardevoir."

"What? _You_ did this?"

"It was the right thing to do. You're the king. You should've decided to get rid of her a long time ago. Anybody with that much power is an enemy to Team Plasma, and you should know that by now."

"Ghetsis, the evil ends don't justify the evil means! Not only have you put a human life at risk, but a _Pokemon's_ life as well. That goes against our whole philosophy! Besides, Cecilia holds the Dark Stone. She's obviously the chosen one, and not Juniper, who gave her the stone in the first place. She's been having dreams, too. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if her mirage in this vision was listening in on us now."

"We'll see about that."

I heard footsteps. Then, I heard the sound of someone being pushed to the ground. Lastly, a foot-Ghetsis' foot-found its place on my ribcage. He exerted as much energy as he could onto it. "Cecilia!" the unnamed person's voice cried out. "No!"

**-x-**

"Will she live?" a voice asked. Again, my eyesight was impaired.

Another voice replied, "The Gardevoir, most definetly. The trainer, however...that's hard to say. Whatever caused her to faint must be trapping her in this coma. She'd be very lucky to wake up in the next few days, let alone at all."

"It's a sad day when an artist dies," a third voice noted weakly, "but his or her legacy will live on if they tried his or her hardest while living. I hope that Cecilia's okay, August. I'd love to stay longer, but I'm afraid that I'll need to go back to my gym for now. Please give me a call when you find out if she lives or not. However, in my opinion, her spirit is strong enough to pull her through. If she dies, I'll be surprised."

Footsteps decreased in volume as they stepped further and further away from my body, as if they were notes subjected to a decrescendo on a piece of sheet music.

Two of the three voices made sense to me at this point. The first voice belonged to my ever-so nervous companion August, who was standing right in front of me when I had passed out. The third belonged to Burgh, the gym leader, who was also there when I fainted on the spot in the middle of the battle. As for the second voice, I had no clue whose it was.

A pain shot through my chest. It was the pain that Ghetsis caused me in my dream. _But how is that possible?_ I thought. _It was only a dream, right?_

I began to cough loudly. Each cough pounded my lungs against my aching chest. My eyes shot open, and I looked around. Hovering over me were August-like I had predicted-and a Pokemon Center nurse with a pink Pokemon beside her. "Cecilia!" August cried out with joy. "You're alive!"

The nurse sighed. "Thank Reshiram and Zekrom!" she praised. "It's a miracle that you lived."

The pink Pokemon crossed its arms and nodded its head as it agreed, "Audino, Audino."

"Wait, what?" I asked. "What happened? Where am I?"

"You're at the Castelia City Pokemon Center," the nurse said, smiling. "Regardless of how populated this city is, there's only one human doctor in the area, and he's all the way on the other end of the city. The Pokemon Center was much, much closer to the gym than the doctor, so you were brought here after randomly passing out at Burgh's gym. You were in a coma for two days!"

"W-what?" I shrieked.

August nodded her head. "It's true," she confirmed. "Nurse Joy, her Audino, and I have been trying our best to revive you since then, but nothing seemed to be working. I was so afraid that you had died!"

I thought about my dream again. _I was so afraid that I did, too, _I thought as I recalled how Ghetsis ended the vision. If he had done that to me in real life, I would have been a goner no doubt.

"I hope you don't mind...or take this the wrong way...but now that you're awake, I should probably go back to my duties and attend to the Pokemon that need my assistance," Nurse Joy apologized.

"I don't mind," I told her. "Thank you so much for trying to save me."

"It's nothing," she replied. "Feel better, and we'll return your Gardevoir to you by the end of the day."

Nurse Joy smiled brightly and walked out of the room. Her pink Pokemon, which August called an Audino, trailed behind her as the two returned to work.

August sat at the foot of my bed. "What happened back there?" she asked me. "It was just so...weird."

I tried to find the best way to explain this to her without revealing my dream to her. I knew that I needed to tell her, but I also knew deep down inside that it wasn't the time to do so. At least, not yet. "You see," I told her, "Grace and I...we've shared a very deep psychic connection. However, I don't ever recall our connection being as deep as it was today."

August cocked her head to the side in confusion. "Could you elaborate?" she requested.

I continued: "Grace's mind is somehow connected to mine, and vice versa. I thought that the bond that we shared only caused us to be able to communicate with each other telepathically. However, after today, the bond spontaneously magnified in strength. Now, apparently, we can share into each other's pain. That's what caused me to fall once Grace did in battle. However, I can't make sense of it. I mean, neither of us have experienced such a deep connection. It's...weird. I can't really explain it. I wish I understood all of this myself."

"Man, you foreigners are _all_ weird." August got up and began to walk out of the room. "I'm gonna go and check on Grace for you, okay? I'll be back soon."

I nodded my head, and she left. I then sunk down in the bed I was sitting in until my head was covered by the bed sheets. After that, all I did was stare at the ceiling, thinking about my most recent nightmare. I thought about Ghetsis and the anonymous person. One of them wanted to save me. The other, Ghetsis, wanted to kill me...

iBut why?/i I thought, still frazzled by the thought. The creepiest part of the whole "Ghetsis Hates Me" thing was that Ghetsis didn't even _know_ me. In fact, he had only seen me once. It was back in Striaton City, when he pierced my soul with his sharp, intense glare.

I tried to distract my mind from the nightmare by shutting my eyes and attempting to get some sleep that _wasn't_ induced by a coma.

That's when _he_ walked in.

"I-I heard that someone passed out at the gym when her Gardevoir collapsed on the battlefield," he said. "Eh. Who am I kidding? You know as well as I do that I was there."

Who was he?

N, of course.


	23. Lost in the Conversation

"Hello, N," I said to him. "Yes, I _did_ notice that you were there at the battle." Sarcastically, I thanked him with: "Oh, and by the way, thanks for distracting me back there."

"Heheh...heh...eh..." N laughed weakly. He sighed, then asked me, "Why must you battle?"

"Why must you question me so much?" I wittingly replied.

"I was really worried about you back there," he admitted. "Both you and your Pokemon were in pain. You see? Battling. Causes. Pain. However, I had never expected that you-let alone anyone on this wretched planet-would have learned that lesson in a way like that. It was as if Destiny Bond was connecting the two of you together."

"But how is that possible?" I asked. "I mean, none of my Pokemon know that move, and I didn't see _you _whip out a Pokemon to link us...and I'm just so confused."

Out of nowhere, my right side was stricken with a sharp pain, as if a spear were jabbing me in the ribs. "Ack!" I cried out as my hands fled to the side of my body that was afflicted with pain.

"Are you okay?" N asked with concern.

"I'm fine," I admitted. "(I hope.)"

"Are you sure that you're okay?" he asked me again. "I-I'm really concerned about your health at the moment."

_Awh, he's concerned about me!_ I thought.

"Maybe you can help by examining my latest dream," I told him.

I told N everything: about Ghetsis, about the mystery person, about the realistic pain. "Maybe," he considered, "the pain in your dream was reflected upon the pain you were experiencing as a result from the bond between you and your Gardevoir."

"Makes more sense than anything I could think of," I agreed, "which would be nothing."

N chuckled, then he rubbed his hand on my scalp, causing my hair to become a wild mess. "I have to go," he told me. "Hope you feel better."

The green-haired dream left the room. Before long, August returned. "Good news!" she cheered. "Grace is doing fine, and Burgh is willing to redo the entire battle with you in two days! This leaves us an entire day to explore Castelia leisurely _and_ to have me train you properly for the battle."

Those words were music to my ears. Not only did I expect to get some much needed"Cecilia Time" without worrying about Ghetsis stalking me or N listening to my Pokemon rant about random crap, but I also was in for a treat: training for the battle. I expected to be so much more better prepared for my _real _battle with Burgh. (Although, one thought came to mind once August mentioned the rematch: _Don't use Grace in battle. It's the best for both myself and herself._

"Thank you so much," I said gratefully. "I owe you one-big time."

"It's nothing," was her modest response. "Now, can you get up? It's only about noon, so if you feel well enough to go now, then we can spend the rest of the day exploring and stuff."

I tried to get out of bed. I pushed the covers aside and swung my legs over to the side of the bed. I pressed my hands into the mattress and pushed myself up. My body was a bit wobbly and unstable at first, but I still managed to get out of bed. However, my ribs still ached from whatever caused them pain. I placed my hands on my ribs and told August, "See? Totally fine."

"Are you sure about that?" she questioned me. "You sure look like you're in a lot of pain."

"I told you; I'm fine. Now, let's get Grace and my backpack and get going."

August pulled out my backpack from a cubby underneath my bed and handed it to me. I quickly zipped it open to check if everything was in there: my Pokeballs, my badge case, the Dark Stone, et cetera. Once I finished examining my bag, I zipped every compartment shut and slung it over both of my shoulders. Then, August directed me to another room, where Nurse Joy kindly handed over Grace's Ultra Ball. We thanked the nurse and her Audino for their help as we walked out of the Pokemon Center. After that, August and I made an agreement that we would meet back at the Pokemon Center no later than eight that night. We departed, going our separate ways for the afternoon.

**-x-**

Man, Castelia City is pretty darn awesome. It reminded me of Jubilife City in Sinnoh, except Castelia was much larger and had a gorgeous view of the ocean. This time, I really got to enjoy myself. I didn't have to worry (much) about getting lost, I didn't have any reason to be mad at anyone, and I was _so_ ready to fight people for another Casteliacone.

However, all of my plans changed once I walked down Gym Street. I looked around. On my right, I saw a the gym. Across from it was an average skyscraper. Okay, major correction: it _was_ an average skyscraper until I saw a flock of Team Plasma grunts parading into the building. I wanted to go in and investigate what was going on, but I didn't want to get caught. Hesitantly, I approached the building. I tried to steer clear of the transparent, glass doors. Instead, I stood _near _the door and pressed my head against the skyscraper's metal covering. I could only hear the sounds of extremely muffled conversation, as the walls of the building were most likely very thick. Eventually, after about ten to twenty minutes-or-so, the conversation subsided. I could hear the faint sounds of an elevator chiming, and I could hear the sounds of people stomping up a staircase.

I decided that it was time to make my move, but I first had to check to see that the coast was clear before I was completely sure that I could proceed safely. I peeked my head out from my hiding area and checked to see if there were any Team Plasma members still residing in the main room.

It was empty. Perfection. I was able to casually enter the building without a problem. I looked around, just to be safe. I didn't know if Team Plasma was as overly-cautious as Team Galactic, so I tried to scout out any and all possible booby traps. There were none. Excellent.

I decided to quietly ascend the staircase to find out what was going on with Team Plasma. As I did so, I checked any and all doors that lead to rooms attached to the stairs. I constantly checked to see where Team Plasma was meeting. I didn't hear any voices until I reached the twenty-first floor. Exhausted, I sat down on the cold floor of the stairwell's landing and pressed my back against the door so I could get a better listen of what was going on in the room behind me.

I only heard three people talking-all of them being grunts, I assumed.

A male voice began to speak: "So, the Light Stone...what do you think we're gonna use it for?"

"Pokemon liberation, _duh,_" sassily replied the a female voice. "What else do you think we'd use it for? Croquet?"

The male voice sounded irritated. "I already _knew_ that. I just wonder exactly what the plan is for it."

A third voice said in a feminine tone, "I think I remember Ghetsis saying something about finding some 'chosen one' to aid with the plan or something. I know it has something to do with both stones."

"Oh, I remembered something!" the other female voice exclaimed. "Ghetsis was telling a bunch of us about resurrecting Zekrom and Reshiram from the Dark and Light stones so we could use them to tell people to release their Pokemon."

"Then the world can live happily ever after!" the other female voice cheered. "No more pesky Pokeballs!"

"No more cruel treatment towards Pokemon," the male one added.

"Yeah, I don't get that," one of the female voices spoke up. "I mean, we've been abusing Pokemon for our uses, too. Doesn't that make us hypocrites?"

I sneezed. I tried to stifle the sound, but it was as loud and inopportune as anything. "You two hear that?" the male asked.

_Don't open the door,_ I hoped. _Don't open the-_

Looks like my prayers went unanswered. The male grunt opened the door. I bent my head back and looked up at the criminal. He looked down at me angrily. To add to the drama, there was a piece of rope in his hand. I knew that this equation's answer was trouble.

"Oh, so this _isn't_ the Pokeball Expo?" I asked in attempts to save myself.

"You," the grunt growled, "are coming with me."

I tried to get up and run, but he grabbed my arms before I could escape.

As if that wasn't the worst part of the whole thing. The grunt tied my hands behind my back with the strand of rope, then began to lead me upstairs. "Looks like someone needs to have a little chat with our king," he told me.

I gulped with fear. Little did I know that worse things were yet to come.


	24. Looks are Deceiving

First, the three grunts forcefully directed me to a room about five flights up. They opened the door and pushed me in, causing me to fall on my knees (as if my body wasn't aching enough), then piled into the room. One of the two females closed the door behind us. Then, the three watched over me carefully, making sure that I didn't try to get up and run.

The room was dimly lit. I could barely see anything. However, there was one thing that I could see no matter what. Out from the shadows emerged Ghetsis, his face as calloused as ever. He looked down at me. "_You_," he groaned. "So _you're_ the person who managed to sneak into Team Plasma headquarters."

"So _you're_ the dude who stared me down in Striaton," I sneered. "You managed to scare the crap out of me back there. I'm guessing that means your mission's been accomplished and I can go home, right?"

"Not so fast," he told me. "You're not getting away _that_ easily.

"What do you want with me?" I asked him.

"I don't know. What do you want with us? You seem ever-so curious, considering that you _eavesdropped _on us."

"Well, when you see conceited morons stockpiling into a building _across the street from a Pokemon gym_, then you're gonna be curious. I mean, what villain _does _that? _Team Galactic_ was even smarter than that."

"Team Galactic was also weak and _failed. _Arceus, you foreigners are dimwitted."

"How did you know that I was a foreigner?"

"You will soon find out. But first..." Ghetsis directed his voice to the grunts. "Check her bag."

The three began to rummage through my backpack. "Hey!" I exclaimed. "What the heck do you think you're doing?"

One of the females pulled the Dark Stone from my backpack. "You _are_ the holder of the Dark Stone. Guess our king was right about you, Chosen One," Ghestis understood.

"_Pardon_?" I asked in confusion. I remembered the conversation that the grunts were having before about Team Plasma trying to locate a 'chosen one.' "Look, I don't have the foggiest idea of what's going on. _Me, _a 'chosen one'? Professor Juniper gave me the Dark Stone. I didn't get it on my own, let alone know what it was until a week-or-so ago."

"Well, _something_ compelled her to give you the stone (although I don't really know what that _something_ is). However, if you'd like to have no part in this plot whatsoever, then Team Plasma would be willing to take that Dark Stone off of your hands..."

"Never! I don't care if I _die_ because I have it. You're the last person I'd trust with anything. I've been seeing horrid images of you in my dreams. I don't think I'd want you to be anywhere near this th-"

The grunts worked together to put everything back into my backpack, including the Dark Stone. Ghetsis stopped me in the middle of my sentence and asked, "In your dreams, you say? No doubt about it-you're the Chosen One." Ghetsis then said to the guards, "Pick her up and take her to the room behind me. I think it's about time our little guest met our leader."

"Wait a minute," I said as two of the three grunts picked me up off the ground and got me on my feet, "you're not their leader?"

"Fool," he answered, "I said in Striaton that I was a _representative _of Team Plasma_, _not the actual leader! However, I think you'll be in for a treat when you meet the _real_ mastermind behind our whole operation."

The grunts dragged me to the back of the dark room. There, a door sat, waiting to be opened. One of the three grunts opened the door to the room. Once it was open, the two grunts holding me pushed me onto the ground. The one who opened the door slammed it shut. I was alone...or so I thought.

My eyes could only see the floor at first. I flailed on the floor as I tried to push myself up onto my knees. My ribs, my knees, and even my face were aching now. It was agony! Once I managed to get on my knees, I slowly tried to get on my feet. Once I did, I was able to see my surroundings perfectly. The room was brightly lit. There was a vast skylight beaming sunlight from the afternoon sky into the room, but that was it as far as windows went. Directly in front of me was an oak desk that was carefully polished and free of any and all scratches, blemishes, et cetera. Behind that desk was a black leather swivel chair with a tall back. In fact, the back of the chair was so tall that I couldn't see who was sitting in it.

The chair spun around to face me. At first, I expected the leader of Team Plasma to be some buff guy who was about ready to kill me, or some psychotic hippy who supported Pokmeon liberation. However, it was much worse than the two combined.

As soon as his gray eyes met mine, my mind instantly thought, _There must be something wrong here! I-it can't be him! It's impossible!_

"Cecilia?" N said from his swivel chair, sounding as if he was more shocked than I was. "_You're_ the one who broke into headquarters?"


	25. The Truth Literally Hurts

"N?" I exclaimed. "_You're _the leader of Team Plasma?"

"W-well...the king, but it all means the same thing. I-I wasn't ready to tell you yet," he confessed. "I was hoping that I would've been able to tell you on the Ferris wheel in Nimbasa City, but I guess that things don't always turn out like they're planned."

"Why?" I asked him, trying to stifle the waterworks that would soon flow from my eyes. "Why would you keep something like _this _from me? I-I thought I could trust you."

"I didn't want to see you getting hurt," was his answer.

But I didn't buy it. "I bet the only reason why Ghetsis knew so much about me was because _you_ fed him and the rest of Team Plasma my information!"

"Look, maybe I should start from the beginning."

"Oh, you'd _better_ explain, because I want answers. Now."

"Okay, okay." N took a deep breath. "Before I first met you in the woods, I just so happened to be in the Castelia City Pokemon Center at the same time that you were there. At first, I was trying to hide from the Seven Sages-Ghetsis and six other elders that act as my advisors and accomplices-and the rest of Team Plasma, but then I saw you and that blond girl. The blond girl had picked up the Dark Stone from the ground and handed it to you, as if it were yours. I first pondered the fact that you were the Chosen One, but I didn't know for sure. I then managed to find you lost in Pinwheel Forest, so I figured battling you so I could listen to what your Pokemon had to say was the best first move."

"In other words, you stalked me."

"For a good reason."

"There's _never_ a good reason to stalk someone."

"_As I was saying_, I found a stray Pidove and asked it to help me for one mere battle with you. After I heard what your Gardevoir had to say to me, I fled the scene and let go of the Pidove. I then headed to Nacrene City, where I unintentionally ran into you at the Nacrene Museum."

"So wait, what were you really there for?"

"I needed to steal the Light Stone, which I managed to do while Team Plasma created a diversion for me."

"Wait, so the stone that I saw in the display case-"

"It was a duplicate, yes. Ever since I obtained the Light Stone, I began to have dreams similar to the ones that you had, and so did Ghetsis, apparently. Once you described your dreams for me in depth at the Dreamyard outside of Striaton, I knew that there was something about you that was special. You see, our dreams were intertwined, which is why you saw Ghetsis and I in your dreams. Then days passed, and you had your battle at the Castelia City gym. Once the both of you passed out, I knew that there was something wrong with that picture. I consulted Ghetsis about it, and he told me that he secretly managed to sneak into the gym with his Cofagrigus. Right before Grace was attacked with the move that caused her to faint, he commanded Cofagrigus to use Destiny Bond to connect your Gardevoir's pain to you so you'd both pass out (which I didn't approve of in the least)."

"And that brings us to that dream I had where Ghetsis stepped on me and could've killed me if it happened in real life."

"It could've killed you regardless. You're lucky that you woke up in time. Those dreams caused by the Dark and Light stones are _not_ average dreams. Plus, you and your Gardevoir are probably still affected by Destiny Bond. If your Pokemon fell through, well, the same would've happened to you, and vice versa."

"So the fact that my ribs were hurting-"

"-reflected the pain in your dream, yes. Anything that happens there can affect you in real life. It wouldn't be a surprise if your ribs were sprained or cracked, even broken."

"I totally want to kill him now. Can you do that for me, or are you just going to _tell me _something that isn't true like you've been doing for, like, two weeks now?"

"Look, I feel awful for lying to you, Cecilia. I just-"

"I don't want to hear it! You lied to me. If I could, I'd stamp angrily out of this room and slam the door behind me. Unfortunatley..." I turned around and waved my bound hands at him."...I'm a bit tied up at the moment, if you know what I mean."

"Oh, uh, let me help you with-"

I turned around and faced him once more. "NO! I'd rather _die_ like this than be helped by a renegade." And then I revealed something that I'd never thought I'd tell N in a million years, considering it was such a sincere and personal thought of mine: "To think that I actually began to have feelings for you."

I shed a tear that trickled down my cheek and splashed onto the floor.

Silence soon followed.

After a few minutes of speechlessness, a siren blared. The door flung open behind me, and I was knocked onto the floor because I was so close to it. In marched Ghetsis, angrier than ever. I rolled onto my back to see his face red with anger. It was _so_ red that a tomato would be lucky to be such a rich hue. "The International Police have found us!" he announced to N. The Sage then looked down at me, and his anger pierced through my heart. "You!" he shouted. "You must've told the International Police that we were here before my minions brought you up here, _didn't you_?"

"W-what?" I cried. "N-no! I didn't, I swear!"

He grabbed my shirt and pulled me up from the ground. I was suspended from the ground as he shook me back and forth with the hand he grabbed me it. "TELL THE TRUTH OR FACE MY WRATH!" he threatened.

For the record, he's _a lot_ stronger than he looks.

"But...I...am..." I replied weakly. I would've spoken up, but the collar of my shirt was practically choking me at that moment.

"Put her down!" N ordered. "She didn't do a thing. She didn't even know what she was getting into until she snuck into headquarters."

Ghetsis threw me onto the ground. _Hooray_, I thought sarcastically as basically my entire body was harshly aching, _more pain._ I was hurting so much that my eyes were squinting and my teeth were clenching. It was unbearable, really.

N came to my side to see if I was okay. "Get...away...from...me..." I muttered.

"No," he said in a strong voice, "I'm not leaving your side."

Ghetsis looked like he was ready to barf, no joke. "Fine, be that way," he told N. "If you get sent to jail and our plan is ruined, _don't_ blame it on me."

Ghetsis then bolted out of the room as fast as he could in attempts to escape.

N looked down at me. "I told you that telling you too soon would get you hurt."

"I didn't think that you meant it _literally_!" I exclaimed. My ribs began to hurt again, and I flinched. "Agh!" I shrieked in pain.

A woman with a dark tan trench coat, a black fedora, and blond hair tied back into a ponytail ran into the room. I couldn't see her face, but it didn't matter. I was in too much pain to care, and the only thing that I was hoping for was that she was there to help me. In a deep voice, she said, "I am Agent Summer of the International Police." Summer looked down at N and I. "What in the name of Arceus is going on here?"

Innocently, N lied to the agent, "I was walking past this building when I heard a commotion coming from one of the upper floors, so I came in to investigate and found this girl being held hostage by Team Plasma. One of the team's administrators was abusing the poor girl, and now she's in excruciating pain."

"Help...me..." I moaned frailly, "...p-please..."

"You!" Summer instructed N. "I need you to help me carry her downstairs. I'll need you to help me take this girl to the hospital on the other side of town."

Together, the two picked me up and carried me out of the building. As they did so, I considered, _Maybe N _does_ care about me..._


	26. Time to Play Telephone

I ended up passing out on the way to the hospital, but what else was new?

I woke up in a hospital bed sometime later that day. The first thing I saw was August sighing with relief. "Arceus, you're a hazard, aren't you?" she asked me, although we both knew the answer to that question. "What happened?"

"Long story short, I snuck into Team Plasma HQ, got tied up by Ghetsis-" I looked at my wrists, and they were still red from being bound. "-and was also beat up by him. Yeah, something tells me that we're not exactly 'friends.'" I made sure to put air quotes around the word _friends_.

"At least you're okay," she said with relief.

"Who told you that I was here?" I asked.

"Some agent from the International Police called up the Pokemon Center and told me that you were hurt," she explained. "Luckily I was there when she called, or else I probably wouldn't have known that you were hurt! She said that she also called your family, although I don't understand how she'd know who you are."

"N must have told Summer who I was," I thought out loud.

"N?" August asked me with curiosity, "Who's that?"

"Oh, um," I stuttered, feeling somewhat awkward, "he's the cute green-haired kid that I keep running into."

"Ooh," she trilled, "did he come to your rescue or something?"

"You could say that..."

"Eee! Sounds adorable!"

"Don't tell my sister about-"

"Don't worry; my lips are sealed!"

As if on cue, my sister called my Cross-tranciever. "Cece, are you okay?" she panicked as I answered the call. "Some lady from the International Police said that you were held hostage and left severely injured!"

"I'm fine," I told her.

"Thank-good-ness!" she cheered. "You'll need to tell me about this when you're done with your journey. Speaking of that, how's your journey going so far?"

"Pretty good, thanks! I've been challenging gyms along the way. So far, I have two badges-the Basic Badge and the Trio Badge."

"The Trio Badge? You went to Striaton?"

"Yeah, what about it?"

"It's just that I met the gym's leaders once. Remember when I went on that month-long cruise a few years back? We stopped in Castelia for a few days, and the three were in town at the same time. Let's just say that Chili was up my butt the whole time."

I laughed. "Really? Well, he tried to convince me that the two of you went out once."

"Oh, we did. It didn't turn out too well."

"Ooh."

"I'm trying to get the Insect Badge, but I've been getting hurt a lot lately, so that hasn't been working out so well."

"Wait, what?"

"Long story. I'll tell you another time, when I'm _not_ in a hospital."

"Okay, I'll _wait_."

A nurse walked into the room and said, "Oh good, you're awake. Cecilia, you have a visitor."

"Gotta go, Candice," I said hurriedly, then ended the call.

The nurse gestured a person to enter the room, and in came walking N (not like it was a surprise or anything). He saw that August was in the room with me and stuttered, "Oh, um, hello. Do you mind if I talk to Cecilia for a few moments?"

August smiled and agreed, "Not at all!"

She continued to stand in front of my bed as N and I stared at her, waiting for her to leave. "August?" I asked.

"Yes?" she responded.

"Do you mind?"

"Oh, privacy. Right. I'll be on my way!"

August then skipped happily out of the room, closing the door behind her. N and I focused our eyes onto each other's. "You really _were_ trying to protect me," I realized.

N frowned. "Yes, but I bet that you hate me now or something," he pouted.

"Well, at first I did," I confessed, "but then you practically saved my life. I guess that we've evened out the playing field already."

"Phew," he sighed.

"But I don't trust you as much as I did before," I added.

"Ooh."

Silence swept the room for a moment. Then, N shyly asked me, "Hey, when you said earlier that you had feelings for me, did you-"

My Cross-Transceiver began ringing, and at the right time, too. I didn't want to answer N's question quite yet. I picked up my wrist and looked at the watch's screen. It was Professor Juniper. I accepted the call, and she asked me with a voice filled with worry, "Are you okay? Your sister told me that you got hurt. Tell me, what happened?

I explained to Juniper a condensed version of the story that mixed the lies that N used with Summer and the somewhat-truths that I used with August. Juniper reacted: "Team Plasma? Really? Be more careful next time, then! The last thing that I'd want to see is you-or the Dark Stone-in Team Plasma's hands. That'd be bad. Very bad."

"I kinda figured," I understood.

"So," she asked me, "how's your research going?"

A blank look washed across my face. "Uh," I confessed, "I haven't really been focusing on my research much lately."

Then came the antipathy of what I expected Juniper's reaction to be: a smile. "Perfectly fine, darling! Are you enjoying yourself, then?"

"With the exception of getting hurt, yes."

She laughed. "Great to hear. As long as you're having fun, then my mission's complete."

"Thanks, Professor Ju-wait a minute! What do you mean by that?"

A crash came from behind, and it was followed by the sounds of a Pokemon chirping, "Pidove! Pidove, dove!"

"Oh dear. Gotta go, sweetie! My Pidove escaped...again."

"W-wait!"

She hung up before I could get her answer. _Of course_, I thought.

The door swung open, and August came in. Wait, correction: the door swung open, and August _fell_ in. "Sorry...?" she apologized from her place on the ground.

_August, August, August,_ I thought, _what am I going to do with you?_

"How long have you been listening in on us?" N asked.

Her right foot scratched her left ankle nervously. "Uh, well, you see-" she began to reply.

"Let's leave it at 'we've got some explaining to do,' okay?" I suggested.

Appalled, N shot a flabbergasted glance at me. It was as if he was saying, _"Why on Earth would you want to do _that_?"_

However, I replied with a reassuring face, trying to tell him, _"Don't worry, I've got this."_

"Let me start from the beginning..." was where my explanation began.


	27. Practice Doesn't Always Make Perfect

I told August _everything_, if you consider everything to be everything bad about Ghetsis and nothing bad about N. I didn't even tell her that N was affiliated with Team Plasma, or that N and I have been sharing dreams. I told her nothing about the "Chosen One" thing, and I didn't tell her (in detail) about what I knew about the Dark Stone. Basically, I censored just about three-fourths of the story, which was music to N's ears, but profanity to my conscience.

"So, in short," August condensed, "your dreams are mysteriously connected to the Dark Stone, and Ghetsis thinks that it's getting in the way of his plan, so he's been trying to kill you."

"Yup," I lied, "pretty much."

"Oh. Okay." Her stomach rumbled. "I'm hungry. I'm going to the cafeteria for lunch! Want me to bring you two anything back?"

"No," I answered.

"No, but thank you," N answered in a relaxed and hushed voice.

August smiled and said, "Okay. Be back in ten!"

She skipped out of the room happily. It was surprising to see that August was slowly blossoming like a spring flower in Floaroma Town.

When she was completely outside of the room's boundaries, she slammed the door shut.

N sighed. "That was close," he said with relief. "However, didn't you just tell her a bunch of lies?"

"It wasn't exactly _lying_," I objected. "I was stretching the truth is all."

"But that's still-"

"You didn't seem to _want_ me to tell her everything. I saved your Team Plasma behind, thank you very much."

"I guess you have a point there, Cecilia."

Try guessing what happened next: our usual moment of awkward silence. (I mean, what else would you expect from a conversation between the two of us?)

"For the record, Ghetsis doesn't _really_ want to kill you," N explained.

I remarked sarcastically, "Yep, and I'm here because I jumped out a window."

"No, I'm serious. He doesn't like you-that's a known fact. However, he just never expected a novice trainer like you to be the 'Chosen One.'"

"What, was he expecting the Champion of the Unova Elite Four or something?"

"Well, if you put it that way, indeed."

"I still think that he wants to kill me."

N came over and put his hand on my shoulder. "Look, he has no authority. He may have authority and power over much of Team Plasma, but I have authority and power over _him_. If he kills you, then he'll pay twice over. Don't worry; I'll protect you."

I totally wanted to cry or squeal out, "Awwww," but I don't do that sort of sappy love novel stuff. Therefore, this isn't a sappy love novel (or at least it doesn't _sound_ like one).

"How are you going to do that, though?" I asked him. "I mean, you can't be in the same place as me _all_ the time."

"You'll see," he answered vaguely.

After that, he took a glance out the window. It was growing darker and darker out by the minute. "I'd better go and, uh, check on the rest of Team Plasma. Feel better," he told me.

As he began to walk out of the room, I told him, "Sleep well."

He stopped and smirked. "You too, Cece." (Strangely, I was okay with him calling me Cece.) He then walked away without saying another word.

And I was alone once more, left to wait for August to return from the cafeteria of the hospital.

**-x-**

"Okay," August told me the next morning as we stood on opposite sides of the Castelia Pokemon Center's battlefield, "now that you're out of the hospital (and hopefully _not_ going to get hurt again), we can begin to train for your gym battle. I have a bug-type of my own, you see, so I can train you no problem."

She pulled a Pokeball out of her black messenger bag, which was strapped across her right shoulder and draped down to hang at her left hip. She enlarged her Pokeball and got ready to throw it in the air. She didn't release it, however, because she noticed something: I didn't have a Pokeball in my hand just yet. "Well? Get your Pokemon ready!"

I looked in my bag and thought about which Pokemon I wanted to pick. Grace was automatically out of the picture, considering that the whole Destiny Bond thing might have been connecting the two of us still. Delilah was a bit cranky, and the only advantage that Seattle would have would have been Blaze Kick, so I knew that Celeste was the way to go. Besides, I hadn't ever used her in battle at the time.

_Time to find out what you know, Celeste_, I thought as I pulled her ball from the bag. I dilated hers, and then August took the first move. "Let's go, Larvesta!" she called out.

Out of her Pokeball came a cute, larvae-like Pokemon with a furry, white front half. Out of its head emanated fiery, red extentions. "What is that?" I wondered as I began to grab my Pokedex from my bag. It read: _"Larvesta, the Torch Pokemon. The base of volcanoes is where they make their homes. They shoot fire from their five horns to repel attacking enemies."_

"That's a bug type?" I asked.

She grinned. "_And_ a fire type," she added. "Your turn to release your Pokemon."

Still baffled by the fact that a bug-type could also be a fire-type, I called out Celeste, and out came my Munna. I looked at her, and she looked at me. "Okay, so what moves can you use?" I asked her, as if I would be able to understand her answer (which I wouldn't have been able to in the first place).

Celeste stared back at me, then turned around, saying nothing. She looked across the way at Larvesta and then froze with fear. She then scurried behind me and cried, "Mu-Munna! Mu-na-na-na!"

I turned around, then bent down to pet my new friend. "Are you afraid of August's Larvesta?" I asked her.

"Munna!" she answered, which I'm guessing meant, _"No duh!"_ in Pokemon-ese.

Then, out of nowhere, Delilah randomly decided to pop out of her Pokeball and join in the conversation. "Stop _trying _to talk to..." This was the first time she had seen Celeste in a while. "...whatever this thing is again. You won't understand her."

I groaned loudly and dug my face into my hands. This practice battle wasn't turning out the way I wanted.


	28. Derezzed

"Look, _you_ talk to Celeste for me," I asked Delilah.

Delilah and Celeste began conversing in whatever strangely universal language Pokemon use. While they did that, I called over to August, "Sorry this is taking so long! Celeste's got a bit of stage fright."

"Take your time," she told me. "My Munna was the exact same way at first. Yours will adapt eventually."

_Really now?_ I considered at the thought of August's Munna. I hadn't met her psychic-type Pokemon at that point, but I still wondered how the two had similar personalities at first. _Could her Munna have been targeted by Team Plasma, too?_

I focused my attention back on Delilah and Celeste, mainly Celeste. I thought about what N's reaction to this would be: _"Don't force a Pokemon to battle. It's inhumane, like battling itself."_

Then, it was almost as if his voice was literally _in _my head: "If Celeste doesn't want to battle, then don't make her. Please. For me."

I shook my head a few times, thinking, _Get out, get out, get out!_

Delilah and Celeste stopped talking to look at me shaking my head violently. August looked at me with a head tilted in confusion. Eventually, I screamed, "Get out!"

I snapped back in reality and looked at my Pokemon, then August. "Sorry," I told them, "there was a fly in my hair."

August stopped looking so confused and took my lie seriously, accepting it as if it were true. Delilah floated over to me and told me, "Okay, here's the lowdown: Celeste is nervous about battling after the whole Team Plasma thing. It's left an indelible mark on her mind, and that's why she's so nervous about battling." Her voice got progressively louder, just to piss me off with the words that were coming next. "Also, she said that before she found you and N at the Dreamyard..." Delilah's voice lowered. "...that Team Plasma was chasing her before hand, and the two grunts that were after her had their Pokemon attacking her. All of those attacks emotionally scarred her as well."

"Oh," I understood, "that makes sense."

August eyed me angrily for a second. She said to me, "Whoa, wait a minute. You and N went to the _Dreamyard_ together? Is _that_ why you were so late to come back that day? Because you were on a date with N? I thought that you had a legit excuse for that!"

"Well," I tried to convince her, "it's not that we were _on a date_. We were just...hanging out. Besides, I wouldn't have been late if it wasn't for Team Plasma picking on poor, little Celeste over here."

"Uh huh, and you suppose that I'm supposed to believe _that_?" she questioned. Then, sarcastically, she added, "It's not like you haven't lied to me before or anything."

I thought about all of the secrets that I kept from her, and all of the secrets that I _still_ was keeping from her. "Look, I'm telling the truth about it! N left before Team Plasma came, and then Team Plasma popped out of nowhere and just randomly targeted Celeste."

"Look, I _know_ that there's something that you're not telling me," she pointed out.

"About _what_ exactly?"

"About this whole N thing. I don't want to travel with a liar, so until you decide to tell me the truth, then..." She choked on her last two words. "...good bye."

She called her Larvesta back to its Pokeball and put it back into her bag. After that, I could've sworn that I saw a tear trickle from her eye before she turned away from me.

It was terrible to see. For the first time, I saw how badly lies could hurt people.

Even when those lies were for her protection.

For the protection of my first Unovan friend.

I didn't want her to get involved in my mess of a story. As a friend, I didn't want her to get involved with Team Plasma, especially not with Ghetsis, who could pulverize her in a moment. I didn't want her to know about the Dark Stone affair, or the whole "Chosen One" thing because I was afraid that she could be hurt in the process.

For a moment, her voice echoed in her mind. It wasn't as loud and realistic as N's voice earlier, but my mind was reflecting on one thing that she said to me in particular: _" Look, I _know_ that there's something that you're not telling me...about this whole N thing."_

I then considered, _Is there a way that she possibly already knows, but wants me to admit to it first? Arceus, why can't this journey be _normal_?"_

Once August was completely out of sight, I returned Celeste and Delilah back to their Pokeballs and called out Grace. I gave her a huge hug, which she accepted with open arms. I began crying hysterically telling her nothing. Eventually, a few tears trickled down Grace's face. I assumed that our psychic bond was still abnormally potent.

Eventually, we let go of each other and looked into each other's eyes. The sorrow in my heart was still there, and I felt that Grace understood how stressed and depressed I felt.

Before the two of us walked away from the battlefield, I cried out to the sky in agony, "Arceus, N, even if you hadn't told me, I would've ended up with pain regardless!"

Grace draped her elegant white arm around me, and together we walked off.

Even though I still had the solace of my Pokemon, I was on my own.

I was both alone and lonely.


	29. A Storm is Brewing

I ended up training on my own, and I even ended up getting the Insect Badge on my own, too. Burgh was amazed by my comeback—both physically and battle-wise. He was more than glad to give me the badge after the battle. He thought it was one of the best battles he'd seen in months.

Then he started sketching Seattle and I—which I thought was kind of _sketchy—_so I decided that it was time to go, and fast. The first place I headed after that was the Pokemon Center, so I could grab a map of the Unova region. I caught a glimpse of August while I was there. She noticed me standing by the desk where the maps were, and she stared me down angrily. _Wow,_ I thought, _I never thought that she could be so mad. It's like she's evolved from a shy Whismer into a bold Loudred in a matter of days._

I decided to leave as soon as I could. Her stare pierced into my soul, and it was kind of creeping me out. In fact, I still question what was scarier: August's angry stare or Ghetsis' face.

Okay, no, that's a lie. Ghetsis' face is _much_ scarier, no doubt about it. Well, not really "scary"...more like _intimidating_.

Back on topic: I began the road to the next town—Nimbasa City—on my own. At first, I was just following an average road, but soon that road transitioned into a full-blown desert. With every step through the greuling sandstorm and the potent heat, I started thinking more and more about how bad I felt for lying to August so much. _Guess this is what I deserve_, I decided.

Soon, the storm and the heat were too much for my solo self, and eventually I ran out of water and passed out. However, water wasn't the only thing I had lost. I had lost all of my hope as well. I wasn't as motivated to explore without a friend there to guide me and comfort me.

I had another vision—which was weird, because I thought I had died in the middle of that barren desert. I saw a dark room, and I stood in its heart. Out from the darkness came N, who was dressed in his usual getup. He approached me and noticed my state of distress, which followed my spirit into the dream. "Cecilia, what's wrong?" he asked me.

"Well, I think I'm dead," I told him, " considering that I just fainted in the middle of the desert between Castelia and Nimbasa."

"You're not dead," he explained. "You and I wouldn't be here if you were dead. Now tell me what the _real_ issue is."

I explained everything—about the training battle, about Delilah's big mouth (well, it wasn't all _my _fault that August got mad), about how she left. By the time I finished telling N my story, I fell onto my knees and shed tears of sorrow. N picked me up and embraced me to comfort my shattered heart. "There, there," he said in a soothing voice. "Shhhh..."

"How do I fix this?" I asked him, still wrapped by his arms, and still sobbing with sadness.

He told me, "I'm sorry this had to happen. It pains me to say this, but I think the two of us will need to let her in on our little—correction: rather large—secret. The truth may hurt, but lying hurts more."

I pushed myself out of his arms. (I still don't know why I did that. I was kind of liking his hug.)"But then she'll know your secret! Wouldn't that be bad? I mean, what if she calls the International Police or something?"

"They wouldn't believe her. Who would expect an 'ordinary trainer' to be the head of a huge organization aimed at liberating Pokemon."

"Good point...but something tells me that she already knows."

"How's that possible?"

"She practically _told_ me that she knew I was hiding more from her."

"Tell her anyway. To her, it must be a measure of trust, not knowledge, for her to know."

The dream faded, and my eyes shot open. I felt something underneath me: a bed. I pushed myself up and looked around. I was in a single-room cabin of some sort. There was a table and chairs in one end of the room. In another was a kitchenette, where a person was watching the microwave to observe whatever he was cooking. Next to me was a backpacker who was sitting in a wooden chair and reading a book. He saw that I was conscious and hovered over me. The backpacker sighed and praised, "Thank Arceus."

I rubbed my head. "What happened?" I asked the guy.

"You were all passed out in the sand and such. Must've gotten heat stroke or something. Lucky I was walking by, or else you would've died out there."

I gave the room a cursory scanning once more. "Where _am_ I, exactly?"

"This is a rest house in the desert. We're only about half a mile from Nimbasa City."

My eyes lit up at the words "Nimbasa City." "Really?" I cried with joy. "Did you just say Nimbasa City?"

"Yes," he told me. "Is that a problem?"

"No, no, no, not at all! I was trying to get there in the first place." I shook his hand. "Thank you, thank you _soooo_ much! Can you tell me where my stuff is so I can leave?"

The backpacker got up and picked up my bag from a corner in the room. He gave it to me, and I sprung up out of bed. I shook the kind savior's hand and thanked him, and then I skipped out of the house. I pulled out my map and used it to guide me that short distance left to Nimbasa City.


	30. Let's Play Pretend

**A/N**— _I love Nimbasa City. owo It's one of my favorites in all of the Pokemon games. Also, thank you all so much for all of your support. I now have 20+ reviews and more than 4K views. I couldn't have done it without you all. :) Also, keep watch on all of these interior and exterior conflicts, because things are just gonna become more interesting. ;D_

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><p>"Nimbasa City!" I cheered as I took in the sights of the sprightly city.<p>

The first thing I did was found the Pokemon Center, where I grabbed a map of the town (something I _should've _done during my first time in Castelia). I then scrutinized it and learned about all of the things I could do there: go see a show at the Pokemon Musical, watch tennis and football games, take a ride on something called the Battle Subway. But the most intriguing thing to me was the amusement park—especially since the gym was at the end of the park's rollercoaster. I couldn't wait to check it all out, but I didn't know where to go first. I decided to sit down at a table and look the map over with my Pokemon. I called out all four of my Pokemon: Delilah, Grace, Seattle, and Celeste. Celeste was much more cheerful than a few days prior because she wasn't on a battlefield. I decided to take N's advice and not force her to fight in battle. _When she's ready, she's ready, _I thought.

As we all looked over the map, I decided that things were getting a bit too cluttered at our table. Celeste was sitting on my head, Seattle and Delilah were arguing in Pokemon-ese (as usual), and Grace was sitting beside me as she calmly looked at the map. I decided to send Seattle and Delilah back to their Pokeballs just to end their argument, and then continued observing the map. Sooner than later, a voice asked me, "May I join you?"

I looked up and saw N staring down at me. Grace and I scooted over to give him some room, and he sat down beside me. Grace said to me telepathically, _"You're still seeing him?"_

_"More like he's still seeing me," _was my mental response, _"but I don't mind. I kinda like it. I sure hope he doesn't hear our conversation, though."_

Awkward silence. Need I say more?

"So, N, you're always asking me why I'm at a specific place, so let me ask you the same," I said. "What are _you_ doing here today?"

"Team Plasma's recruiting," he told me in as quiet of a voice as possible. "I go where they go, except I go at my own pace, for the most part. I try to run away from them every so often, but it doesn't really work that well. Ghetsis always sends a bunch of grunts to go and find me, and it's really annoying. I mean, really, I'm their leader. I can protect myself every once in a while, right?"

_"Wait, he's the leader of Team Plasma?" _Grace telepathically asked me in shock.

I ignored Grace and said to N, "It's almost like Ghetsis is acting like he's your father or something."

I laughed, and he told me, "You have no idea."

I then noticed something about N: he was just so darn stressed all the time! I took a quick scan of the map and stopped when I noticed that it mentioned a big Ferris Wheel in the amusement park. I remembered something N had said to me about wanting to tell me his secrets on the Ferris Wheel. Then, I decided to tell N, "You know what, you're too tense and serious and stuff. Maybe you just need a day to be an average teenager for once. It wouldn't be a bad idea. After all, you _did _tell me that you wanted to go on the Ferris Wheel with me."

"I don't know," he told me. "It's just that...that Team Plasma is all over me, and—"

I put my hand over his mouth. "Just live for once. You might never have the chance to do so again."

"But—"

Before he could object anymore, I quickly sent Celeste and Grace back to their balls and put them back in my bag. Then, I grabbed N's wrist in one hand and the map in another. I began to drag him out of the Pokemon Center and head towards the amusement park, which was indeed an incredible sight. There were so many rides, and everyone there was exuberant and having a grand time. The gym sat in the center, waiting for me to challenge it. However, I knew that the gym had to wait at least another day, considering that I needed to help N live for a little. Before the two of us headed for the Ferris Wheel on the furthermost eastern end of the lively park, we played some carnival games and rode some rides. It was amazing—N actually seemed to be enjoying himself, too. I mean, it took a while for him to warm up to the idea, but once he did, he began to show a playful and blithe side that I'd never seen before. (He also ended up being a skilled gamer, which meant that he beat me at most of the games that we played together.)

Eventually, it was time for us to go on the Ferris Wheel. We got into our own little Pokeball-shaped pod and sat down next to each other. N took a deep breath and relaxed for once. He told me, "Ferris Wheels have always fascinated me. I mean, all of the mechanics that go into making these things work—it's just so interesting."

"Indeed," I agreed. I then wondered something. "N," I asked, "what exactly _is_ Team Plasma's plan? I mean, I'm practically a part of it—or at least it _seems _like I am."

He explained in an extremely relaxed tone: "Overall, our mission statement is that all Pokemon deserve freedom from their trainers. That means that our goal is to liberate Pokemon from humans, thus making black and white clearly distinct. This is the goal that Ghetsis and I shared when he came to me and asked me to lead Team Plasma. However, we have a complicated plan involving this. First off, I needed to locate and find the Light Stone, which I did. Before we found out that you played a part in our plan, I was supposed to make my way to Dragonspiral Tower, where Reshiram would be reborn from the Light Stone. Together, we would challenge the Pokemon League—which meant that we would also defeat Alder, its current Champion—and use my high status as Champion to issue the entire Unova region to release their Pokemon. Eventually, this would turn into a domino effect where each person would slowly release their Pokemon until the entire region—and then the rest of the Pokemon world—frowned upon training, leaving us with a harmonious world in its place."

"But N, have you every considered that most trainers _need_ their Pokemon to make each other better beings?"

"No. Most all of the trainers I've run into were very rude and selfish. They cared less about their Pokemon and more about winning. It's such a painful sight. However, once I met you, I've been questioning my motives, thinking that maybe not _all_ trainers are malevolent."

"N, that's because we all aren't bad people. Sure, anybody could run into a trainer as obnoxious and careless as the ones you were just describing, but to say that _all_ trainers are like that is a stereotype."

He sighed. "I just wish that _all_ trainers on this planet were as caring and philanthropic as you are. It's no wonder why Zekrom—excuse me, the Dark Stone—chose you."

I thought that what he had just said about me was sweet—so sweet that I completely ignored what he said about the Dark Stone. I put my head on his shoulder, and he put his arm around me. We sat like that the whole rest of the ride around.

When we got to the bottom, we were in for a surprise. We disembarked from our pod and found us to be surrounded by Team Plasma grunts. "Great," N muttered, "Ghetsis sent out another stupid search party for me. I knew this would happen."

He became tense again. _Well, it was nice while it lasted,_ I thought as I stared at the grunts with fear.


	31. Ferris Grunts

N's blood was pulsing with anger. His teeth clenched, as if he was trying to hold back choice words that he wanted to scold his minions with. His eyes narrowed as he stared down the search party. In other words, he was furious. I couldn't blame him—if I was N the moment that we had stepped out of the pod, I would've felt the exact same way.

My emotions, on the other hand, were a different story. I was scared beyond belief. It was bad enough that there were Team Plasma grunts encircling us, but the _worst_ part was that they were sent by Ghetsis, and _he_ hated me with a burning passion. I automatically knew that there was nothing good that could come from this encounter.

"You!" one of the grunts shouted at me. "Get away from our lord this instant, or we will have to use force!"

I stepped back a few inches. I was too paralyzed by fear to flee.

N slid in front of me and extended his arms to both sides, acting like a human shield. "Don't bother her," he instructed the grunts. "She wasn't doing any harm."

But the grunts were defiant and unyielding. One of the grunts disagreed with, "She invaded our headquarters in Castelia, making her an enemy to us all."

N explained, "But she's the holder of the Dark Stone. You have no right to hurt her. She's under _my_ protection."

The same grunt told N, "But Ghetsis told us that—"

"Forget what Ghetsis told you!" N bit back. "_I_ am your leader, not he. He has no right to issue orders to you—that power is mainly under my control, and he can only stipulate decrees when I tell him that he can."

A sassy female grunt was bold enough to retaliate: "Well, _excuse_ me, N, but I don't see _you_ doing anything for Team Plasma. I mean, you're our _leader_, but you're doing a lousy job at it, punk! Ghetsis is taking more responsibility over us than _you_ are, for crying out loud!"

I backed up even more, afraid that something bad would happen...but then N began to back up as well. He wanted to fight, but he knew that beating the snot out of his minions would get him nowhere. He didn't have Pokemon to challenge them with, so that wasn't a possibility either.

I attempted to muster up enough courage to step in and help somehow. I whipped my backpack off of my back and began to rummage through it. However, there was a problem: I was still backing up while I searched for a Pokeball. As a result, I ended up falling backwards, causing my back to land hard on the strong, metal surface of the Ferris Wheel pod. Some of the contents of my bag spilled onto the floor, so I quickly got off of my back and began to throw everything back in as fast as humanly possible.

As I was recollecting myself, one of the grunts ran past N—pushing him aside as he did so—and slammed the pod's door shut. He ran over to the wheel operator's panel (since the operator fled in fear sometime before the pod N and I were in reached the ground) and pressed some buttons that locked the pod from the inside out. I stopped what I was doing to try to manually lift the door (because that was before I knew that the stupid grunt knew how to lock the pod), but it wouldn't budge. I pressed my hands against the glass window in the door and began pounding on the glass. I called N's name as loud as I could, but he probably could only hear as much as my frantic pounding.

That was when I lost hope. I virtually gave up right then and there.

I went to my bag and began putting everything back inside of it. As I did so, my necklace dangled beneath me as it rested on my neck. I picked up the charm that was on it and looked at it. It was an Icicle Badge attached to a chain—the parting gift from my sister. I thought about how my sister would never give up whenever she was on the brink of losing a battle. She welcomed all wins and losses with a persistent courage that burnt like the tail of a Charmander.

And then I knew that I couldn't give up so easily.

I retreated to my bag again, pulling out my Pokeballs while I cleaned up the remainder of my bag's contents that were scattered across the floor at the same time. I then threw all of my Pokeballs (and one Ultra Ball) into the air, and out came each of my lovely five Pokemon: Delilah the Froslass, Grace the Gardevoir, Seattle the Riolu, and Celeste the Munna. The first place that Celeste went to when she emerged from her ball was my head, where she sat up there in fear. Seattle and Delilah appeared to be ready to pitch a fight (considering that the two hadn't finished settling the score at the Pokemon Center earlier that day), but I quickly interjected their spat with a powerful command to my Pokemon: "Everyone, please listen up!"

Delilah, Seattle, and Grace focused their eyes on me (and right before Delilah and Seattle resorted to killing each other, too). My hands went to my hips, and I told them, "Okay, so how I got here is a long story that I will explain later, but right now I need your help! We'll all be stuck in this pod if you three don't give it everything you've got to get us out of here."

My Pokemon nodded in understanding, and they got ready to attack the door open. However, right before they went on with the plan, someone else ran into the scene.

It was Summer from the International Police.


	32. Dirty Little Secret

**_A/N—_**_Sorry for the delay! I've been extremely busy lately. Finals are taking over my life. LOL_

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><p>Summer was within feet of the mob of grunts surrounding N. She was accompanied by a Munna, but it looked much different compared to Celeste. Its flesh was yellow; the flowers were green; and the blowhole, eye, and center of the flower design were all a gorgeous hot pink. It was pretty, yet unusual. Although I couldn't hear much of what was going on, I tried to keep up with Summer's tactics. First, she commanded her Munna to use Psychic on the group of grunts. Then, she yelled something at N. He understood her command and jolted over to the control panel. Summer yelled some other things at N, and he began pressing various buttons on the panel. Eventually, the pod opened up. I sent all of my Pokemon back to their Pokeballs—everyone except for Celeste, that is, who refused to go back into her Pokeball. I put the three balls back into my bag and got ready to jump out of the pod. Celeste clung to my hair tightly as I took the leap out. I landed firmly on my feet, and my Munna eased up a little.<p>

Summer's Munna was strong, but even the strongest Psychic-type couldn't use Psychic forever. The Pokemon slowly began to show signs of fatigue, causing it to struggle as it attempted to keep hold of the grunts. "You!" Summer called to me.

I turned my head to her. "Who, me?" I asked in confirmation.

"No, the grunts," she snapped sarcastically. "Of course I was talking to you! I need some help, and quick! Munna can't hold on much longer! Yours will need to help, too, or else—"

With a painful expression consuming his face, N interjected: "Cecilia, don't! It's bad enough that _one_ Pokemon is being forced into pain...and it'd be worse if another were to suffer the same fate."

"Pain?" Summer asked N. "What in the world are you—?"

N ran over to me and put my hands in his. "Please, listen!" he begged. "Look at Summer's Munna! It's suffering greatly. Don't let Celeste suffer, too. Please."

Munna cooed, "Mun..."

I hesitated, taking my head and turning it to Summer, then N. _Summer...N...Summer...N..._

Summer chastised me with: "What? Are you _seriously_ considering listening to _him_? I'm a member of the International Police, for crying out loud! I have authority over him...and _you_ too!"

I hesitated again, ruminating the possible outcomes in my head. _If I helped Summer, then N could make a clean getaway, but then he might not like me anymore. However, if I went with N, then N would still like me, but Summer and the rest of the International Police would put me on their Most Wanted list or something._

Summer's Munna looked even weaker now, and the forcefield that its Psychic attack used to trap the grunts and bring them up into the air was weakening. "Cecilia, make up your mind already!"

I looked up at Celeste, then back at N. I ripped my hands out of his grasp and whispered to him, "I'm sorry."

With a tear running down my cheek, I turned away from N and walked over to Summer. I picked Celeste off of the top of my head and held her in both of my hands. I looked at her and said in a weak voice, "I sure hope you can use Psychic."

With a reassuring, semi-confident, semi-unsure chirp, she replied, "Mun-na-na!"

I assumed that meant "yes," so I put Celeste down and commanded, "Celeste, help out Summer's Munna by using Psychic on the grunts!"

Celeste nodded, and she obeyed my command. Her attack aided in reinforcing the shield, making the burden lighter for Summer's Munna. As the two Pokemon worked together to keep the attack running, Summer walked over to me. The International Police agent was dressed similarly to the time I first encountered her (err...well, the first time _she_ encountered _me_): her long, blond hair was tied back into a ponytail, she wore a long, storm grey trench coat, a fedora to match her coat, and sunglasses with pitch black-colored lenses to tie the mysterious getup together. I wasn't sure exactly how old she was, but from what little of her face I could see, she appeared to be rather young. I would've assumed that she was new to the International Police, but she seemed to be too dextrous to be an amateur.

Summer stared at me through her darkly-tinted shades and pointed out, "You're like a trouble magnet, aren't you?"

I laughed weakly and nervously. "I've been getting that a lot lately," I explained.

"Why am I not surprised?" Summer looked at the watch on her wrist and called to it, "Contact HQ."

The watch, which was apparently a Crosstranciever-type contraption of some sort, echoed back in a synthetic voice, "Contacting HQ."

Within a few seconds, a different voice—one of a more masculine and normal variety—asked, "Garrett from HQ speaking."

"Garrett," Summer answered, "it's me, Summer."

"Summer? Where are you? Our agents lost track of your progress back in Castelia City for some reason," he said.

Summer told Garrett, "It's a long story; I'll explain later. Right now, send over some agents to help me arrest these Team Plasma grunts. We can't hold them up for long."

"We? Do you mean that—?"

"Just send me some agents, stat!"

"But—"

Before Garrett could finish his sentence, Summer turned off the video watch. _She's totally hiding something, _I realized. _Just...what _is_ it exactly?_

I dared to ask Summer, "Is everything okay?"

"Just—look, why do _you _care exactly? This is official International Police buisness—not some game or something. Agents should be here any second to retrieve the criminals, so you can leave soon, got it?"

I nodded my head. _Dang, what's her problem?_

"I said, _GOT IT?_"

"GOT IT, SIR, ERR, MA'AM, ERR—"

She slapped her forehead with her palm. "You irritate me," she admitted.

A helicopter hovered overhead. Summer looked up at the chopper, then looked at me. "Take your Munna and go home," she instructed with a serious voice that was trying to compete with the blaring sounds of the rapidly-approaching chopper.

I did what she said and put Celeste back into her Pokeball. Right as I began to head to the Nimbasa City Pokemon Center, Summer yelled to me, "And by the way, I know N's little secret."


	33. Maybe I'm Dreaming

**_A/N—_**_Sorry for being so...inactive lately. If you're in high school, then you probably understand how much of a toll finals can take on you. I'm out for summer, though, so I should be writing a LOT more. ^_^_

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><p><em>"Wait, what exactly did she say to you again?"<em> Grace asked me as we sat at a table in the Nimbasa City Pokemon Center.

I reiterated, "She said, 'I know N's secret.' How hard could that be for you to understand?"

I was pretty infuriated. That Summer chick was _really_ getting on my nerves. She seemed to be very kind and helpful the first time I had met her, but that probably was because Ghetsis had beaten the crap out of me. The second time I had met her, she was merciless. Her true colors had shone through her cloaked exterior at our second encounter, regardless of the fact that she saved my life...again.

_"You've gone through a lot today. Why don't you go get some rest?"_

"I have too much to think about, though! I can't sleep right now. There's still a lot in my mind that needs to be sorted out."

_"Like what?"_

"Well, there's the whole fight between me and August, for one. I'm worried about N right now, and—" I explained the video call between Summer and Garrett—especially the part where Summer was cutting Garrett off.

_"She's definetly hiding something," _Grace noticed.

I bit back, "No kidding!"

People began to stare at me because I was being so loud. (Either that, or they were staring at me because they thought that I was talking to myself rather than my Gardevoir.)

_"Uh, Cece, people are—"_

"Grace, don't...call...me...CECE!"

I pounded my fists against the table. No doubt about it, this whole Summer thing was messing with my brain chemistry. Now, even more people were staring at me. I didn't care, though. I just slumped down into my seat and let my head droop while my arms were crossed tightly. I heard Grace swiftly get up and come to my side. She put her dainty hand on my shoulder. I looked up at her and said, "I'm going insane, aren't I?"

She gently rubbed my back. _"No, you're not. You just need some rest is all_."

I thought about all of the dreams I kept having. At first, I wanted to tell Grace, "But sleep will just give me more to think about!"

Then, I thought about how N and I could see each other in our dreams. I wanted to make sure that he was okay. I wanted to tell him about what happened to me, and I especially wanted to tell him that I was okay.

I then agreed with Grace: "I guess that's not a bad idea."

**-x-**

"N!" I called out to the heavens as I slept soundly and dreamed loudly. "N, are you here?"

Silence.

"Please, tell me that you're here!"

More silence.

I fell to my knees and pushed my palms against the floor of the dark void. I stifled a few tears back, but I was ready to burst like a dam any second. _Maybe he's truly ashamed of me._ I considered, already jumping to the worst conclusions. _Maybe he doesn't want to see my face again. Maybe he's worried about Celeste. Maybe—_

I heard slow footsteps make their way into the dream. I looked up and saw N trudging his way through the shadows. As if almost instantly, his eyes met mine. He stared at me with mixed emotions—hatred, angst, pity, sorrow. I couldn't quite pinpoint exactly how he felt about me at the moment.

Once he got within a few feet of me, I got to my feet. He was about a foot away from me when he stopped walking and said, "Cecilia."

I made myself seem unmoved by the series of events that had occurred earlier that day. "N," I said back.

"Look," he confessed, "I'm—I'm sorry for being so rude towards you earlier. I know that the whole 'abusing Pokemon' ideaology brings out my ugly side, but the fact that Ghetsis sent out even more grunts to find me was just truly infuriating, and it made me want to explode with anger."

I could sympathize with N. I was going through a lot of stress as well—so much that it was making me yell at my own Pokemon, which is something that I abhor. "Look, N, I must say that we've both got a lot on our minds," I told him. "I wish that we could get away from it all, but that would be a bit difficult. We're practically stuck in a rut."

"I blame myself. This is all my fault for dragging you into this. I wish that someone else—someone idle and dim—had been chosen. I mean, it's not that I don't like you or anything. It's just that it'd be less complicated and—"

I was somewhat getting annoyed with N. "Okay, I get it."

"Sorry. I—I didn't mean to offend you or anything."

I didn't listen to that last thing he said. I was too busy thinking about how I was going to tell him how Summer knows his secret. Although, chances were, he already understood that something was on my mind. I make a "distracted face" when my mind is preoccupied with something. It's...kinda obvious. And embarrassing. Especially embarrassing."

"So, uh—" N said to break the silence that I was making.

I then blurted out, "Summer somehow found out that you are the leader of Team Plasma!"

I covered my mouth in embarrassment. _Way to go, Cece...way to go._

"But...but how?" N asked.

"I don't know, but, by the looks of it, she hasn't told the rest of the International Police."

"Explains why the International Police haven't targeted me yet," he realized. "They've targeted just about everyone else in Team Plasma. And yet Ghetsis is worried about _me_. Hmph. Irony at its worst."

"Agreed."

N's image started to fade—and mine began to as well! "We're waking up," N explained. "Before we part, I was wondering something. Would you like to go see a show at the Pokemon Theatre with me?"

_Awh, is he asking me out?_ "Uh, sure. When?"

"Now."

"But, why now? Wouldn't Team Plasma still be after you?"

"It's most likely not daylight anymore. Plus, with the darkness of the theatre, they'll have no idea where I ran off to."

I smiled, and the image faded. I wanted to shout out, "It's a date," but the dream ended before I could.


	34. Lights, Camera, Ghetsis

_**A/N—**Brownies for anyone who spots a _Danny Phantom_ reference in here! ^_^_

_Also, sorry for the delays for this story; I've been writing Neopets fanfiction and beta reading for a friend of mine. In other words, I've been busy lately._

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><p>I stood outside of the Pokemon Theatre in Nimbasa City. I didn't bring my backpack with me; I didn't think that I would need it. I thought that nothing would go wrong, and if something did, then I hoped that N would protect me or something. Besides, I didn't want to risk the chance of Ghetsis tampering with my Pokemon like he did with Grace. I figured that all four of them were safer back in the Pokemon Center.<p>

What a stupid idea.

Anyways, N met me outside soon after I arrived at the theatre. He was dressed the way he usually was, which was surprising. I expected him to be undercover or something, just for safe measures. I didn't say anything about it, though. N said to me, "So, Cecilia, shall we?"

I nodded my head. "We shall," was my response.

With his left arm, N opened the front door for me and then gestured his right arm in a welcoming way. "Ladies first," he said to me.

I blushed and walked inside. N followed behind me, letting the door close on its own as he walked away from it.

N and I bought tickets to see that night's show: _Exciting Nimbasa. _Just thinking about the show made me think about the recent series of events._ Heh,_ I thought, _no kidding._

We walked over to the seating area entrance, where an usher handed each of us a playbill. (I could've sworn that the dude laughed suspiciously or something as we walked in.) We proceeded into the arena and sat down in our assigned seats. The first thing I did was briefly (and mentally) worry about my Pokemon back at the Pokemon Center. Then, I peered into the playbill. Inside, a paper insert said that the show would be featuring a special guest appearance by Nimbasa City gym leader and acclaimed world-famous model Elesa. Personally, I was excited. My sister was a huge fan of her, and I still had to battle her. I thought that it would be cool to see my competition beforehand.

The lights dimmed. The curtains dragged to opposite ends of the stage. A spotlight illuminated the set and its dancers. The performers were all adorable, but I could only name a few of their species: Pidove, Audino, Lillipup. All of the dancers were dressed up in a way that reflected its trainer's unique style.

Music began to chime, and the Pokemon began dancing. I thought that it was a very enjoyable sight, but N seemed to think otherwise. I then remembered how this went against his morals. Worried, I tapped his shoulder gently and whispered, "Are you okay?"

N replied, "This theatre has changed since the last time I've been here. I remember once seeing a show here when I was a young boy—back when all of the performers were human rather than Pokemon. This is...this is—"

Quite simply, N abhorred the sight.

After that, I didn't think about the show. I didn't focus on the stage. I just worried about N.

Then, during an interim in the concern, I began to think: _Could it be possible that I'm starting to share in N's ideals?_

I then fought back that thought with: _N-no! I love my Pokemon. My mind needs to fight back. Say no to Pokemon liberation...say no...say no!_

All of that worrying seemed to have given me a headache. N turned his head and noticed my pain. He whispered, "What is the problem?"

"Nothing," I lied. "My mind's just a bit...conflicted at the moment."

N was about to say something to me when the show suddenly ended. The entire theatre went dark. People began chatting amongst themselves, wondering why the lights had gone out. It was too dark to actually _see_ N, so I held onto his wrist nervously. He put his arm around me to console my worried soul. I leaned over and put my head against his chest as I worried about the matter at hand. After everything that had happened to me since I had started this journey, I had every right to be nervous about the lights going out.

I felt a set of hands pull me away from N. I squealed and squirmed, but couldn't break free of the person's grasp—a grasp that was unusually strong. I then realized who was pulling me up from my seat and kidnapping me. "N, help!" I cried. "Ghetsis—he's—"

Ghetsis held me in one arm and covered my mouth with the other. He took me somewhere, although I had no idea where "somewhere" was. He stepped up a small flight of stairs and walked a few feet into another dark room. I heard the creaking of rusty hinges opening from somewhere in front of me. I was thrown into something, and the rusty hinges screeched again as they closed on me. Ghetsis threw me into the thing where the screeching came from. My back hit something hard and cold, and I fell to an equally hard and cold floor. The sounds of rusty hinges closed in on me. I had the feeling that I was trapped in a cage. _Joy_, I thought. _Best date ever. Oh, wait, correction: second date ever. The first one wasn't so great either. At least that time I was trapped in an air conditioned ferris wheel pod with my Pokemon by my side._

Lights flickered on, and I looked up Ghetsis staring me down from beyond the cage's boundaries. "What gives, dude? Is this because I just went on two dates with your king in one day? Where are we anyhow?"

The Seven Sages' leader explained in a firm voice, "We're backstage of the theatre, if you must know. We can't have you interfering during our big announcement—or at all, for that matter. You're messing up my ingenious plot for world domination by slowly convincing N that Pokemon and humans can get along. To answer your question, yes, I am upset that you're dating our king. However—and he doesn't know this—he's not the brains behind this operation. I'm the ventriloquist, and he's my puppet."

"So, you're _using_ him?" I exclaimed in shock. Then, something struck me: "Wait, why are you telling _me_ this?"

"Because, foolish child, you're going to stay here—out of Team Plasma's way—until N can fulfill his prophecy and make the people of the world release their Pokemon until I am the only person on the planet with control over Pokemon. Then, I can rule the world with an iron fist and mold it in my image!"

"Dude, you are one messed-up Froot Loop."

"Don't doubt my strategy! With naive N as my pawn, and you—the poor excuse for a 'Chosen One'—out of my way, my plan is by-all-means foolproof!"

A grunt ran over to Ghetsis. "Sage Ghetsis, the crowd is getting restless," he explained. "You'd better go out there and make your announcement before someone contacts the International Police or something."

"Alright," Ghetsis understood. "Keep them contained for a few more seconds. I'll be onstage in a few moments."

"You know," I interjected, "I could always scream and interrupt your entire 'presentation thing.' Didn't think of that, now did you?"

"Oh, but I did," Ghetsis admitted. "If you ruin this presentation in any way, I can use my Pokemon to _destroy you_. Now, tell me, are you going to be quiet, or are you going to be subject to a grim date with death?"

I gulped with nervousness.

"Good," the calloused man said. "Glad you're seeing things my way. Now, if you'd excuse me, I have a speech to make."

Ghetsis broke through the curtains and walked out onstage. He began speaking about Team Plasma's mission to end Pokemon suffering and blah, blah, blah. It wasn't interesting, considering that I had heard this story a gazillion times before. However, during the speech, I heard a female's voice whisper to me, "Hey, you!"

I looked around me, not sure who was trying to grab my attention, but I didn't see anyone. "Behind you," the voice whispered again.

I turned around, and out from the shadows emerged a familiar, dainty figure that was dressed in black and yellow. _I'd know that outfit anywhere, _I thought.

It was Elesa.


	35. In Which Summer's Secret is Revealed

"Elesa?" I exclaimed.

The gym leader warned me with a loud _shhhhhhh!_ "I was _supposed to_ make an appearance at tonight's show, but that Ghetsis guy took over the whole operation," she explained in a quieter voice.

"It's not the only operation that he took over," I told her.

It sounded like Ghetsis was close to concluding his speech. "Look, kid, we can talk more back at the gym later. Right now, I need to set you free so we can get the heck out of here."

Elesa approached the cage and kneeled so she could get a better look at the cage's lock. With her long fingernails, she picked the lock open. She ripped it off and threw it across the room. I pushed the door open and quickly escaped from the trap's barriers. The two of us got up from the ground, and Elesa explained, "There's an exit over there. Follow me!"

She ran to the right-hand side of the backstage—something that I found to be impressive for someone in heels to do. I followed her like she directed me to. When she got to the door, she held it open for me and let me run through, probably because Ghetsis was more after me rather than her. She followed behind me, making sure that the door closed quietly behind her. She ran ahead of me (which was, again, impressive for someone wearing heels), and I continued to trail behind her. As we ran down the streets of town, bystanders began to gossip amongst each other, wondering why we were running, and why I was following Elesa. The first thing that came to my mind was, _Oh great. Now they all probably think that I'm some serial killer or psychotic stalker or something. Great. Just great._

But I had to force that thought out of my mind. My life was at stake—not Elesa's (although it was possible that Ghetsis would have wanted to kill her for setting me free). I needed to keep on Elesa's trail so she could get me to safety.

Before we knew it, we had made it to Elesa's gym. She stopped in front of the building, waiting for me to catch up. I arrived a few moments later, huffing and puffing. Unlike me, Elesa was unfazed by all of the running. "Okay, we're safe now," Elesa assured me.

However, I wasn't convinced, telling the gym leader, "Well, _you_ are, but, knowing Ghetsis, there must be a whole search-and-destroy party of Team Plasma grunts trying to track me down."

"How about this, then: I let you hide out here for the night if you explain to me what the heck is going on."

"Deal."

**-x-**

Elesa took me to a hidden sector behind the battling platform that was at the end of the roller coaster. "This is my home, I guess," she told me. "Why don't you take a seat on the couch. I'll put some tea on the stove."

As the gym leader went off to another room within the secret annex, I stood in place and took in my surroundings. Elesa's home (apartment...whatever it's called) was very simple and refined. The walls were painted white. The furniture was very chic and modern-most of it colored black, but there was a touch of yellow here and there. The living room was arranged in a sophisticated, yet simplistic, manner. There was a marble fireplace on one wall. In front of the fireplace was a long, yellow coffee table, and behind the table was a simple black couch about the same length as the table. I sat down at the couch until Elesa returned with two teacups filled to the brim with some sort of herbal tea in her hands. She sat down beside me on the couch and set the teacups down on the table. I picked mine out and started sipping from it. The tea made me feel...relaxed. It was the first time I had felt at ease in days.

"I kept my promise," Elesa reminded me, "now you keep yours."

I explained everything to the gym leader: about how I have only been in Unova for a week or so (I'd lost track of time by then), about how I met August and N, about N's secret (I made her swear to secrecy about that), about how August got mad at me and left me to travel alone—everything, to put it bluntly. "Sounds like you've been having a heck of a journey, darling," Elesa comprehended.

"You have no idea," I told her.

"So, if you're a trainer, then where are your Pokemon?"

I paused for a moment. To be honest, I hadn't thought about them until Elesa brought up the topic. "Well, you see, Ghetsis already screwed up one of my Pokemon. I kinda didn't want a repeat of that, so I left my Pokemon back at the Pokemon Center as a precaution."

"Uh, darling, you do realize that—"

"Yeah, I know: stupid move on my part."

"But you had good reasoning. I guess it sorta justifies your decision. Hopefully, they're okay."

"I left them a note."

"Would they be able to read it?"

"They're a lot smarter than you'd think. Or, in Delilah's case, they can be rather meddling."

"Right. She was the reason why—"

There was a rumbling from the central heating vents above us. I looked up at the vent, which was cleverly hidden within the ceiling. Out of nowhere, someone jumped out of the vent and fell to the floor. The mysterious person was wearing a heavy trench coat that dragged onto the ground and a fedora. Her long blonde hair gave her away. "Summer?" I exclaimed. I noticed that she had my backpack. "Wait, what are you doing with my stuff?"

She got off of the ground and handed my bag to me. This time, she wasn't wearing sunglasses, but she had the collar of her trench coat popped up, as if she was trying to hide her face. "I heard about the Team Plasma's invasion of the Pokemon Theatre. I figured that you were involved, but by the time I had gotten there, Ghetsis was ranting furiously about how you escaped his clutches. I tried to trace you down via your Pokedex's wireless database, but you weren't at the Pokemon Center with your stuff. I tapped into your Cross-transceiver through its wireless connection, only to track you to this area right here."

I grabbed my bag out of Summer's hands and looked through it, just to make sure that all of my items—my badges, my Pokeball, the Dark Stone, et cetera—were in order. As I did so, Elesa asked me, "Darling, who is this?"

"Allow me to answer," the agent interjected. "My codename is Summer. I'm one of the International Police's newest—and perhaps most talented and elusive—recruits."

The word "codename" echoed in my mind. _So, that's not her real name? I knew that she was hiding something big._

I had a feeling that all of my answers were cloaked by her trench coat's collar. My eyes narrowed. "So, Summer," I told her, "you must be dying in that heavy coat of yours. Why don't you take it off and cool off a bit?"

"Uh, no-no," Summer refused. "That won't be necessary. I'm fine this way."

"Are you sure about that," I asked persistently, "or is there something else that's keeping you from doing so? A rash? A tattoo? _A secret?_"

Elesa gave me some sort of _what-the-heck-do-you-think-you're-doing_ look, but I ignored it. Although I couldn't see much of Summer's face, I could tell that she was sweating—sweating with _fear_, that is. "You know, I'd better be going."

As she tried to run off, I speedily stepped on a bit of trench coat that was trailing behind her. "You're not going anywhere," I told her, "until I figure out your secret."

"W-what secret?"

"Don't play dumb with me! I suspected something from the second you told me that you knew N's secret somehow. After that, when you were video conferencing with that International Police operative, the operative was trying to say something, but you cut him off. At that moment, something told me that your secret had something to do with me. I haven't figured out what that secret is, but I'm about to find out!"

I jumped onto Summer's back and tried to rip off her fedora and un-pop her trench coat's collar. It wasn't easy, considering that she was struggling more than a wild bull, and considering that Elesa was distracting me with shouts of, "What in the name of Arceus do you think you're doing?" However, I managed to pull it off—and right as I fell off of Summer's back. I looked up at the agent. I couldn't believe my eyes at the sight.

"Sooooo," August said sheepishly, "I guess that I have some explaining to do."


	36. In Which August Tells a Frame Story

_**A/N - **Hooray for frame stories! X3_

* * *

><p>"<em>Some explaining<em> doesn't even _begin_ to describe how much you need to tell me," I told her, pretty pissed off at Summer...August...whoever the heck she was. I was so baffled that I didn't even _know_ who she was anymore.

August, still in shock that I discovered her secret, asked, "Uh, so, where should I start?"

"How about _you_ tell _me_ something first, darling," Elesa interrupted. "Who is this chick?"

"Elesa," I explained, "this is August...my _ex-_traveling partner." I stressed the prefix "-ex" in a way that made it clear to Elesa that the two of us were no longer associated with each other for a reason.

"Okay," Elesa understood, "got it. I'll let you two, uh, chat or...something. This is between you two, and not us three." Elesa walked into the kitchen, murmuring something like, "_The things that happen when you're a gym leader...dear Arceus!"_

Once the gym leader was out of sight, I told August sternly, "Explanations. Now."

"I told you: _where do you want me to start?_"

"How about you explain the whole 'International Police Agent' thing first?"

"Okay, fine. I owe it to you." August took a deep breath. "It started after I won the Jet Badge from Skyla in Mistralton City. I was sitting in the Pokemon Center, waiting for Nurse Joy to heal my Pokemon, when I noticed two Team Plasma grunts out of the corner of my eye. The duo was sitting at a nearby table with a potted shrub next to it. They were discussing something, but I didn't know what it was. Curious as anything, I stealthily snuck over to the table and hid behind the plant. That's where the real fun began.

'Sage Ghetsis said that we should be able to commence with our plan for Pokemon liberation soon,' one grunt, a male, said to the grunt opposite him.

'Really now?' the other, a female, asked. 'It feels like we just joined Team Plasma yesterday.'

'That's because it _was_ yesterday.'

'Oh. Right. So, what's the plan?'

I listened in on the entire discussion: about how Team Plasma was trying to resurrect Reshiram from the Light Stone; about how their leader, Lord N, was the leader behind the entire plot–"

"Believe it or not," I interrupted, "Ghetsis is the brains behind the whole operation, but I'll explain that another time."

"_Anyways_, right as they were in the middle of talking, I sneezed. I tried to hold it back, but I couldn't. 'Did you hear that, mate?' the male grunt asked the female.

'Indeed,' the female answered. 'I'd say that the sound came from that shrub, but I doubt that shrubs can sneeze.'

_Don't look, _I prayed. _Dear Arceus, don't look behind the–_

The male got up from his seat and approached the shrub. He pushed the branches aside and noticed me sitting there, twiddling my thumbs nervously. 'Oh, hello there!' I improvised. 'Don't mind me. I'm just...looking for my contact lense! It popped out of my eye somewhere over–oh, who am I kidding.'

I got up and ran as fast as my fourteen-year-old legs could carry me. 'After her!' the male grunt instructed as he and her colleague braced themselves for the chase.

They were on my tail, but I didn't look back for even a second, as I knew that would zone me out. I took the chase outside, into the broad daylight. I tried to scream for attention as I ran, but the planes taking off nearby drowned out my screams. Then, I made a wrong turn and ended up in a dead-end alley. As I crouched to the ground and shielded my head, shivering in fear as I did, the grunts tracked me down and blocked the only exit of the alley so I couldn't escape. I was trapped–out of ideas–out of hope!

Then, a rope ladder draped from the sky and landed between the grunts and I. I stopped cowering for a moment while I looked up at the black helicopter that the ladder was connected to. Down the ladder slid a man with grey-streaked black hair that was dressed in a tan trench coat. He ignored me for the moment and focused his attention on the Team Plasma grunts. 'I'm codenamed Looker,' the man said in a foreign accent. 'By order of the International Police, you're both being put under arrest.'

The two grunts tried to flee the scene, but, as if out of nowhere, two more agents showed up. They blocked the grunts from escaping and quickly slapped handcuffs on each one's wrists. The two agents seemed to disappear out of thin air, and the grunts went with them.

Looker turned around and noticed me. 'Miss,' he asked me, extending a hand out to me so he could help me get off of the ground, 'are you okay? Did the grunts harm you in any way?'

I grabbed the man's hand, and he pulled me up. Once I was on my feet, I dusted myself off and replied, 'I'm fine, thanks. A little nervewracked, but fine.'

'What happened?'

'Well, to summarize it, I was eavesdropping on the grunts' conversation out of curiosity. Too bad I sneezed, or else I would've gotten away with it!'

'You spied on them? Impressive. Do you mind if you tell me about what they were talking about? We're trying to figure out what we can about Team Plasma, and, as of now, your intel is probably our only lead.'

'Uh, sure, but I can't chat for too long. My Pokemon are healing at the Pokemon Center.'

'Don't worry; we won't be more than an hour. Now, follow me up this ladder and please join us in the helicopter.'

Nervously, I followed the man's orders. If there was one thing that I knew, it was that you never mess around when it comes to the International Police. I knew that anything to do with them had to be serious buisness.

When we both got into the helicopter, Looker sat me down at a table. He joined me at the opposite side of it, and I began to tell my story. 'I'm impressed,' Looker admitted at the end of my story. 'It takes a lot of courage to try to spy on the enemy. It's a good thing that you did, too, because now I know that we must try to put a stop to Team Plasma before it's too late.

Tell me: how would you like to join us? I have a special mission in mind that would be perfect for you.'

'Me, an agent for the International Police?' I asked in disbelief. 'Aren't all of the people you recruit adults? I'm just a kid! How could I make it here?'

'You've got the motivation,' he told me. 'I see that as a gift. I'm kind of hoping that you would use your gift to join us–for this one mission, at least.'

Interested (and honored), I asked Looker, 'Tell me more.'

It was an interesting plan. According to Looker, Professor Juniper had acquired some unusual black stone, and she was planning on having a foreigner from Sinnoh come to Unova to investigate its roots. He believed that there was something about the stone that Team Plasma would be interested in, so my mission was to locate the girl and protect her, while also learning about the stone itself. That's how I ended up meeting you, and that's also why I never had the chance to finish earning my badges. During the mission, there were times were I needed to escape from you to share my intel with headquarters, so I used our 'free time' as a diversion. Of course, I never expected you to end up dating the enemy when I was doing so–"

"Hey!" I shouted. "We're not dating!"

"Say what you want to say," August disagreed. She then went on: "So, I spent my free time contacting Looker and other International Police agents, sharing my findings with them as I did. Then, when we had returned to Castelia City, I received a call from HQ about a possible Team Plasma gathering at a building across the street from Burgh's gym. I had to go undercover as my alter-ego, Summer, and bust the operation. That's when I figured out that you were somehow tied into Team Plasma's plans. Even though N was by your side as you were suffering, the International Police suspected him to be a part of the whole operation. I just let it slide by, considering that he helped me transport you to the hospital. (Of course, your injuries weren't as life-threatening as your previous ones, when the bond between you and Grace nearly killed you both. That meant that we had time to spare to rush you to a _real_ hospital.) When I was eavesdropping on your conversation with N at the hospital, I heard everything. I already had the sense that the explanation about what was going on between you and N was missing a bunch of details, but I just played along. Right before we practiced for your rematch with Burgh, HQ contacted me, saying that they needed me to return to base for a few days. I couldn't have been luckier when Delilah began to blabber on about you and N at the Dreamyard. Already knowing most of your secrets, I acted oblivious and made it seem like finding out about you and N going on a date to the Dreamyard–"

"It wasn't a date."

"–was the worst lie that you could keep from me. I used that as my escape. I wasn't really mad at you, Cecilia. I hope you realize that."

"Oh, I got that. Loud and clear. Now, I hope that _you_ realize that I'm _furious_ at you! No, wait, _furious_ doesn't even _begin_ to describe how angry I am at you for hiding this from me the entire time!"

"Look, I–"

"Just–just go back and join your 'International Police Buddies.' It's not like you had a friend that you cared about or anything."

With my backpack now secured safely on my back, I pushed August aside and walked to the kitchen, where Elesa was sitting at a table eating a salad and reading a fashion magazine. "Thank you so much for saving my ass back there," I told her, "but I must be going."

"It's no problem at all," she understood. "The roller coaster is active. Just go back to the main part of the building, sit down in a car, and let the coaster take care of the rest. Feel free to come back and battle me if you wish."

"Got it. Again, thank you."

I casually walked out of the kitchen, and then I bolted for the exit, slamming it behind me once I opened it and escaped Elesa's apartment. I quickly hopped into the roller coaster car, and the ride instantly zoomed out of sight, and before August could catch up with me, too. I ran out of the gym, and then hurried my way back to the Pokemon Center.

The only thing on my mind was my ex-friend's betrayal–nothing more, nothing less.


	37. A Battle With Internal Conflict

I was sound asleep...

"Wake up.

Wake up!

FOR THE LOVE OF ARCEUS, CECILIA, _WAKE UP_!"

...until Delilah woke me up. At first, I tried to ignore her. Then, my Froslass Wake-Up Slapped me. Before Delilah could do anything else to torture me awake, I stumbled out of bed and looked at my Pokemon. "Hey, Delilah," I greeted her.

"I feel like I've been trapped in there for _ages!" _the Froslass complained.

"I know," I said, "and I'm sorry. I was mad at first, but eventually realized that there were other people to be mad at."

Delilah tilted her head to the side. "Uh, what?"

"Long story short, August was making a big deal out of nothing."

Delilah let out a hearty laugh. "Makes sense," she proudly understood. "I knew that she was faking the whole time."

"You have no idea what I'm talking about, are you?"

"Not a clue. What are we talking about again?"

I slapped my face with my palm. "When will you ever learn?" I mumbled.

**-x-**

I explained the whole thing to Delilah and Grace at breakfast that morning.

"Really?" Delilah asked me. "She was an agent the whole time? Mega cool!"

"No, NOT cool," I yelled at her.

_Cecilia_, Grace said, _calm down. You're becoming too riled up._

I listened to my Gardevoir's advice and took a few deep breaths. "Sorry, Delilah," I apologized. "I'm just really, really mad at August."

"But why?" Delilah asked as she took a bite of her Pokemon food. With a full mouth (which repulsed me, to be honest), she added, "What did she do to you?"

"She never wanted to be my friend."

_But Cecilia–_

"It's quite obvious, though, isn't it? I mean, she only befriended me for the sake of her stupid mission. Everything was set up that way. I was just a simple asset in the International Police's plot."

"YO CECE! SHUT THE HELL UP FOR A SECOND AND LISTEN TO ME!"

My eyes narrowed, and I glared angrily into my Froslass' eyes. "What?"

"Why is it that when you found out N's secret, you were cool with it, but when you find out August's secret, you get all pissed and stuff?"

_She's making a good point._

"Because–" I tried to answer, although I couldn't find the right words to say. "Because–because I–I–"

"–was blinded by love," Delilah said, finishing the sentence for me. "Face it, Cece. You have a major crush on N. That's why you were cool with it. However, if you only had a casual relationship with him, how do you think you would've reacted when you figured out that he was the leader of Team Plasma?"

"Uh–" I pondered. I had never thought about any of the things that Delilah was telling me. For once, she was telling me useful information.

"Exactly. You can't put it to words. Think about it: you were shocked by being betrayed by a friend, but you were to wonderstruck to be mad at N. It's not that hard to understand, but I don't think that you've figured it out until now. I think that you need to set your priorities straight, missy."

I was speechless. Like Grace had said, she was proving a point: I had no right to be mad at August. N's secret wasn't much better than August's. If I was forgiving to N, then it was only just to be forgiving to August.

But based off of how I acted towards my ex-friend, I didn't think that I would be able to apologize. I mean, I didn't even know where she went off to. For all I knew, she could've been a million miles away.

_For all I know, I could've gotten her kicked out of the International Police for what I did, _I thought. _She was supposed to be protecting me and the Dark Stone. That's the only reason why "Summer" came to my aid when we stopped traveling together–it was in her job description. It all makes sense now, but I feel like I've made a horrible mistake._

Grace seemed to have heard my thinking. _Look, Cecilia,_ she said, _don't be so hard on yourself. You're thinking about worst-case scenarios. Besides, a good friend would do anything to apologize._

"Are you saying that I should try to scout out August and apologize?" I asked.

_I have a feeling that, when the time comes, you two will meet again and be able to apologize to each other. You're both at fault here, to be honest._

Grace's words of wisdom made me smile. "Thanks, Grace."

"Hey!" Delilah shouted. "What about me? I helped you sort things out in your mind! Don't I deserve some–"

I got out of my seat and hugged Delilah. "Thanks," I told her. "I had no reason to be mad at you back in Castelia."

I then walked over to Grace and hugged her as well. "And thanks so much for lightening my spirits," I told her.

**-x-**

After breakfast, my Pokemon and I trained on the field behind the Pokemon Center. We had a gym battle to get ready for. It was the first time that I had battled with Grace in the longest time, so I was a little nervous. Still, I felt like it had to be done.

Believe it or not, training went well. The Destiny Bond between Grace and I seemed to have dissipated, which was great, considering that I was sick of going to hospitals. Grace was battling like before, and nobody had to work about a dual knock-out.

I couldn't get Celeste to battle again; she was battle-shy, and I absolutely needed to respect that. I bet that hard-core trainers would have let a Pokemon like Celeste go if they wouldn't battle, but I felt like that was an inhumane thing to do.

Seattle was training very well. I watched her movements carefully; they were swift and agile. She exerted all of her energy to battle with extreme precision. I was surprised, considering that I had never seen the Riolu battle like that before. I then thought about how little I battled with her, and then decided that she really wanted to show me what she could do so I would use her in battle. I admired her go-getter attitude and decided that I was definitely going to use her during the gym battle.

**-x-**

Then came time for the actual gym battle. I stood inside of the gym, staring at a roller coaster car. _Okay,_ I thought. _This is it. Time to go and rock this battle._

When I had made it to the end of the roller coaster track, I hopped out of the car and walked up to Elesa. "Nice to see you again, Cecilia," she said. "How are things going between you and August?"

I said nothing.

"Don't want to talk about it?" she asked. "I'm cool with that. Now, let's see what you can do. I've been anticipating this battle all day."


	38. Alder's Words of Wisdom

Long story short, the battle was a close one. We were both down to our last Pokemon in the three-on-three battle. It was just her Emolga and Delilah, face to face. Delilah and Emolga were both weakened, but Delilah pulled through and helped me win the battle.

Emolga was the only Pokemon that really posed as an issue during the battle. Seattle took down the first two Pokemon, but Emolga took her out no problem. Even Grace didn't stand a chance. But, again, Delilah saved the day.

The weird thing was that she didn't complain at all about battling Emolga. I couldn't quite pinpoint why, though.

"Great job, Cecilia," Elesa congratulated me. "You deserve this Bolt Badge. Take it."

She handed the token: a small badge shaped like a thunder bolt. I politely took it from her and looked at it closely. It was such a stunning object.

"Thank you," I said.

"No problem." She smiled. "Good luck getting the other four badges. You're probably best heading off to Driftveil City, considering that it's home to the gym closest to here. Just keep one thing in mind when you go—Clay's a bit of a short fuse."

"Oh. Sounds...peachy."

"He's a good friend of mine, though. If he doesn't want to give you the time of day, just show him your Bolt Badge and introduce yourself."

"Will do."

I turned around, and a roller coaster car zoomed onto the once-empty track in front of me. Right as I was about to board it, I remembered something. I turned around and called out to Elesa, "Wait!"

I darted over to her. "Before I go, can I have your autograph? My older sister's a huge fan."

She agreed, "Sure. Just give me a second." Elesa ran off to her hidden house for a second and returned with a notepad and a pen with gold ink. "Who am I making this out to?"

"Candice," I told her, "of the Snowpoint City Gym."

"Your sister's a gym leader? How interesting." Elesa began scribbling something on a sheet in the notepad. "Candice," she said aloud as she wrote. "Battle with an open heart, an open mind, and especially a lot of style. Keep rocking the gym leader title, and who knows—maybe we'll get to battle someday. Warm, overseas regards: Elesa."

She tore the piece of paper off and handed it to me. "Thank you so much!" I told her. "My sister's going to be thrilled when she reads this."

"It's nothing," she said modestly. "Good luck on the rest of your journey, Cecilia, and don't let Ghetsis win."

"Got it."

I boarded the car, and it sped out of sight. Before I knew it, I was at the entrance of the gym. The autograph was in one hand, and the Bolt Badge in another. I quickly stored the badge in its place in my case, and I carefully folded up the autograph and hid it behind the case in my bag. I absolutely did not want to lose that piece of memorabilia.

I headed out the sliding doors and headed to the Pokemon Center for a quick rest (for both my Pokemon and myself). After that, it was straight off to Driftveil.

**-x-**

The trip through Route Five was quick, but interesting. Not too far off of the gate connecting the route and Nimbasa was a space filled with performers. Each performer had a wonderfully unique personality that made watching he or she rather enjoyable. However, the zeal and excitement of the sight reminded me of Pokemon Contests and, therefore, reminded me of home. I decided that the first thing that I was to do in Driftveil was contact my family, as well as Professor Juniper. However, family came first in my mind. Always has, always will.

When I was watching a guitarist play a relaxing, mellow riff on his acoustic guitar, a strange man approached me from behind and asked, "Isn't music wonderful?"

I turned around and looked at the person. He had red hair that was orange at the tips, and it was pulled back into a loose, messy ponytail. He wore a white poncho that was striped with red and orange at the ends. He also wore white pants that were frayed at the edges, as well as black sandals. He had six Pokeballs casually draped over his shoulders. I had no idea who he was, but there was some sort of welcoming vibe to him.

"Yes," I responded. "Music sure is something." I had a semi-confused look to my face. It's not every day that a stranger pops up out of nowhere and sparks a conversation with you. (Then again, that had been happening to me a lot at the time.)

He noticed my facial expression. "Oh, I'm sorry," he apologized. "I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Alder—Champion of the Unovan Elite Four."

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Alder, sir," I said.

"Don't call me mister," he commanded, "or sir. I'd much rather you just called me Alder."

"Well, pleasure to meet you, Alder." We shook hands. "I'm Cecilia. I'm from Sinnoh."

"You are? How interesting. What part?"

"Snowpoint."

"I'll have a feeling that you'll find Icirrus City to be quite pleasant, then. The climates of the two cities are very similar."

"Are they now?" I became homesick for a second.

I must've been making some sort of facial expression or something, because Alder quickly noticed that I was somewhat downcast. "What's a girl from Sinnoh doing all the way in Unova?"

"Professor Juniper wanted me to do some research, although I'm not sure why I'm here anymore, to be completely honest." Based off of everything that happened to me since I arrived in the distant region, that answer could easily be proven valid.

"Why's that?"

"Rather not talk about it." I didn't want the Champion of the Elite Four to get involved in my mess-of-a-life. I had already sucked two gym leaders into the spiraling vortex of whatever was going on. I figured that the Champion would have too much on his hands already, so—

I had thought of something. "Alder," I asked him, "why are you here? I'd figure that a trainer of your stature would be busy battling."

"What," he answered in the form of a question, "the Champion can't take a day-or-two off to explore Unova? Cynthia's always exploring Sinnoh, gathering bits of ancient history for her enjoyment and knowlege. What makes her any different than me?"

He had a good point. "I'm—I'm sorry, Alder."

I was surprised by his response: "Don't be! You don't know how many times I've heard that before. The only people that understand the trials and tribulations of being a Champion are the Champions themselves. However, a good Champion finds time to do what he or she loves. For me, it's travelling. For Cynthia, it's learning. And this doesn't just apply to Champions; it applies to everyone on this planet. That guitarist finds time to express his love for music. Elesa does the same through modeling. Likewise, Burgh does it through creating artwork, and Lenora through archaeology."

"Wow. I'd never thought of it that way before. That's such an interesting way to think of things."

"Indeed." Alder smiled. "I can tell that you have a pure spirit and an open mind. You'll go far in life; I'm sure of it. I like you, kid. If you ever need me, just give me a call." He grabbed my wrist and punched his number into my Cross-transceiver. "I'm afraid I must be off. I have places to see and places to be. Thank you for talking with me, Cecilia."

And before I knew it, Alder was gone.


	39. Pecked to Death by Cuteness

Standing in front of me was the only thing standing in the way between me and the Quake Badge: the Driftveil Drawbridge. It was massive and coated in a shiny, red paint. It seemed extremely sturdy, too. I wanted to cross, but the bridge was up and unable to be crossed at the moment.

A man dressed in jeans, a t-shirt, and a bright red vest that matched the bridge's paint ran over to me and said in a western accent, "Yer lookin' to cross this hur bridge?"

I nodded my head. "Yes, sir," I answered.

"Well, yer in luck!" he told me. "Just got back from mah lunch break just now. I'll go and lower 'er for ya right now!"

"Thank you, kind man."

"Dun mention et." The bridge operator returned to his station, which was set up right near the bridge, and pressed a bunch of buttons. Then, the two ends of the incredible structure lowered and formed one uniform path connecting me to Driftveil Bridge. "Have a good day in Driftveil, ya hear!"

I waved to the kind operator as I began to cross the bridge.

**-x-**

As I made it to the middle of the bridge, feathers of various colors began to fall from the sky. It was kind of pretty. I felt one fall on my head, so I picked it up and looked at it. It was white with a green center, and the green matched the color of N's hair.

_N._ The name ran through my mind.

I couldn't forget it.

Delilah's voice shot through my mind. _You were blinded by love! _Her advice repeated itself. It got really annoying.

"Don't listen to Delilah," I thought, trying to calm myself down. "She's in her Pokeball."

"Actually, I'm right here." I turned to my left and saw my short-tempered Froslass standing beside me. "You were thinking about him again, weren't you?" she asked me.

I looked down at the feather again. "A little," was my modest answer. "Do you mind walking beside me? I-I feel a little lonely."

"Whatever."

I walked to one of the sides of the bridge and looked out at the sea. I remembered when N and I were looking out at the sea on a pier in Castelia. I remembered my family back home as well. A tear dripped out of the corner of my eye.

Delilah complained, "Oh, Arceus! Don't tell me that you're _crying!_"

I rubbed the tear off of my cheek. "N-no. I'm not," I lied.

"Mhm. Sure you aren't."

I focused on looking out at the sea once more. I wondered how everyone back home was doing. It had been about two weeks since I had last seen them. To be completely honest, I was homesick beyond belief.

"Geez, Cece, did I hurt your feelings or something?" Delilah asked, sincerely concerned about me for once.

"No," I told her. "I just miss home."

"To be honest," she said to me, "I do, too."

"Well, we've won three badges so far. All that's left is to win the other five and learn enough about this Dark Stone of mine. Then, we can leave."

"Well, _good."_

After a moment of silence, we resumed walking to Driftveil. Feathers continued to fall from the sky. Eventually, a blue Pokemon landed in front of us. It was small and covered in feathers. It had a beak and webbed feet. Unsure of what this species was, I whipped out my Pokedex and scanned the Pokemon. _"Ducklett," _it analyzed in its usual robotic voice, "_the Water Bird Pokemon. When attacked, it uses its feathers to splash water, escaping under cover of the spray."_

"Duck!" the water-and-flying-type Pokemon quacked.

Delilah started laughing. "He sounds so funny!" she exclaimed.

"Delilah," I told her, "don't laugh at him! That's rude."

Ducklett smiled. "Duck—Ducklett!" The Pokemon waddled over to Delilah and started pecking her...well, it's not really a "foot," is it? I don't know. Let's call it her skirt. The Ducklett began pecking at her skirt.

"Hey!" she yelled. "Cut it out, dude!"

Delilah tried swatting Ducklett away, but the Pokemon then cuddled against my Froslass' skirt. "Awh," I told Delilah, "I think it likes you!"

"But. I. Don't. Like. It," she tried to explain to me. "Get it off of me!"

I walked over to the two and picked up Duckett. "Hello there!" I greeted the Pokemon.

"Ducklett!" it cheered, waving its feathered wings happily. It then started pecking my face.

"Uh, nice to meet you too?" I said, somewhat in the form of a question.

Delilah then murmured to me, "See? It's not as cute when he's pecking at _you_ this time, now is it?"

I saw what my Pokemon was saying. I put down the Ducklett and said to him, "It was nice meeting you, but we have to go now."

Ducklett tilted its head to the side. "Duuuuck?" he asked.

Delilah and I turned around and continued across the bridge. Not even a minute after we did, Ducklett began following us, squawking, "Duck—Ducklett—lett!" as he did.

I turned around, but Delilah kept going, wanting nothing to do with the Pokemon. "What is it?" I asked Ducklett.

"Ducklett—Duck!" he plead.

It was then when Delilah turned around and scurried back over to us. She understood what he had just said to me, no doubt. "Oh no," she begged, "_don't_ let him come with us. Please."

I asked Ducklett, "Is that it? You want to join us?"

"Duck!" he confirmed.

_"Please say no. Please say no. Please say no." _How much money you bet that this was what Delilah was thinking at that very moment?

"Why not?" I said. "You're just adorable—regardless of the fact that you peck a lot."

Ducklett flew on top of my head. "Duck!"

I grabbed a Pokeball from my bag and poked Ducklett with it. The Pokemon was sucked into the ball with a beam of red light. I then put the ball in front of my face and watched it rock back and forth in my palm. _Wobble. Wobble. Wobble. Click!_

And that's how Kuchi—my fifth Pokemon—joined my party.


	40. Leave a Message After the Beep

**A/N**— Pokegirl360 asked me who Cecilia's fourth Pokemon was. Cecilia's pokemon, in order of obtainment, are Delilah, Grace, Seattle, **_Celeste_,** and Kuchi. Celeste was the Munna that Cecila saved at the Dreamyard.

If you have a question for me, feel free to ask in the comments and I'll answer it either in the next chapter or via private messaging. Remember that no question is stupid. ;D (Although, please only ask me questions pertaining to the story. Thanks!)

Also, this will be my last chapter update for a while. I'll be on hiatus for approximately a week, give or take some. I'm going on vacation, but I'll be back—I pumice. *brick'd*

(Of course, you'll only understand what I meant by "I pumice," if you _reeeeeallyyyyy _paid attention to the Black and White games. ;D)

* * *

><p>"Driftveil City! We're here!"<p>

We had finally made it over the bridge. My new Pokemon, Kuchi, was perched on my head, and Delilah (who had spent most of the walk over the bridge complaining about Kuchi) was floating beside me. Kuchi was excited, so he started to gently peck at my head. Delilah desperately wanted to be back in her Pokeball, so I granted her wish by pulling her ball out of my bag and pointing it at the Froslass until a red beam of light sucked her into the tiny device.

I looked around at the unfamiliar town. It seemed quaint and closely-bound, with farmers markets on virtually every corner. There were docks near the bridge's exit, and some of the docks had small delivery boats stationed at them. In a sense, it was a snow-free version of Snowpoint. I kinda liked it because of that. However, I did feel extremely homesick the more I thought about the fact.

I ran around Driftveil until I could find the Pokemon Center. Once I was there, I sat down on a couch and relaxed. Kuchi flew off of my head and plopped his feathery, blue butt on my lap. I pet his head a few times. Afterwards, I dialed my home phone number into my Cross-Tranciever.

"Hello?" A voice asked on the other side.

The image on screen was blurry at first, but quickly adjusted and refocused in on the subject. It was my mom. "Cece, darling! Glad to see you again. You just missed your sister. She just left to, uh, clean up the gym after a battle that she had yesterday. It was nasty; there was shrapnel _everywhere_."

_Stuttering—the first sign of a liar._ "Hey, Mom!" I smiled and blew her a kiss over the phone. "I miss you so much! Has everything been going well at home?"

"Very," she confirmed. "Your sister has been busy as ever with her gym battles, and your father's been busy making sure no creeps get into the gym."

"Do you know when Candice will be back?"

"Well—you see—uh—gotta go, bye!"

She hung up.

_Hastiness—the second sign of a liar._ I sat there and wondered what my mom could have been hiding from me. She usually isn't the one to lie, and I could tell that she was trying her hardest to keep her secret a secret—although I wondered why she would keep a secret from her own daughter. Still, it looked like I wasn't going to find out for a while.

I then decided to call Professor Juniper, considering that I hadn't checked in on her in a while. I punched her number into the Cross-Tranciever and waited until her picture appeared onscreen. She was standing still and smiling brightly. "Hello?" I asked. "Professor Juniper?"

She said, "Hello there! How are you?"

"Good, but—"

"Sorry, but I'm not here at the moment. However, if you leave a message, then I'll try my best to get back to you as soon as I can. Professor Juniper, signing off."

You don't know how much I hate answering machine messages like that. I hate them with a passion. You think that the person is with you on the phone at that very moment, when, in reality, it's the person's answering machine. Ugh. Juniper's message just plain ticked me off. I didn't answer; I just hung up.

_So, Juniper's not answering. Candice is nowhere to be found, and my mom won't explain what's going on over there. What's going on?_

Kuchi noticed my concern, so he nuzzled his head into my stomach and began quacking softtly, as if he were attempting to console me. _"Duck...lett. Duck...lett. Duck...lett."_

"I don't know why Delilah thinks that you're such a nuisance," I said to the Ducklett. "In reality, you're really sweet. Thanks, Kuchi."

"Duck!" he quacked.

I smiled at my new friend. As I gently pat his head, I noticed something from afar: a familiar tuft of green hair hiding in the corner of the Pokemon Center.

_N_, I thought. _But—_

He motioned his finger at me—a tacit signal that was telling me, "Come here."

And so I decided to go to him. I put Kuchi on my head and walked over to N. The first thing I said to him was, "N? What are you doing here? I thought that—"

"—Team Plasma would keep me away from you?"

I blushed. "Something like that," I admitted shyly. "What's up?"

"Look, I don't have much time, but I'd just like to warn you that Team Plasma's still after you. Ghetsis is furious that you got away from him (and, to be honest, I'm furious at him for doing what he did in the first place), and he's completely convinced that you're a threat to our whole operation. I tried to reason with him, in attempts to prove him wrong about you, but he refused to listen to my logic. Although I abhor his decision, he's after you and the Dark Stone. He feels that if he gets the stone from you, then he won't have to worry about you in our way. I feel that if he gets a hold of you once more, then I'll have to worry about—well, uh..."

"Thanks for the heads up, but why can't you contain Ghetsis? Aren't you Team Plasma's king?" I wanted to explain to N that Ghetsis was just using him, but I felt like this wasn't the time, so I played along with what N believes.

"Well, uh, you see...I just don't feel ready to talk about it with you. I mean, it's very, uh, complicated and stuff."

"It's okay. Thanks again for telling me to be careful."

I leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. We both blushed.

"Ducklett!" Kuchi cheered.

N looked up at my head. Confused, he asked, "Uh, why is there a Ducklett on your—?"

I explained, "Oh, this is Kuchi. Say, 'Hi!' to N, Kuchi!"

"Duck!" the Ducklett greeted.

N rubbed Kuchi's head. Kuchi seemed to enjoy it.

"We met on the Driftveil Drawbridge. He seemed very drawn to me, so I let him join us."

Unlike when he found out that I'd caught Celeste, N appeared happy for me and my Ducklett. It was weird, but I suddenly realized that maybe his ideals were changing. The only question running through my mind was, _Am I the cause?_

_Only time will tell, I suppose._


	41. Git Along, Littl' Battle!

_**A/N—**There were no fan questions this week. D8 Remember: I'll answer every question you throw at me, as long as it relates to the story. Don't worry_—_I don't bite (hard)! ;D_

* * *

><p>After a day or two of training, I was ready.<p>

At least, I thought I was.

I stood in front of the doors to the gym, nervous and unsure about whether or not I was ready for this battle. I tried to keep in mind what Elesa told me about Clay, who was the Driftveil City gym leader. _"Clay's a bit of a short fuse," _her words echoed in my mind. _"He's a good friend of mine, though. If he doesn't want to give you the time of day, just show him your Bolt Badge and introduce yourself."_

I took my backpack off and grabbed the Bolt Badge from my badge case, then stuck the object in my pocket. _Just in case I need it, _I thought.

Right as I was about to walk in, a large, bulky man stampeded through the doors. He looked like a cross between a cowboy and a business man. He was talking to someone on his cell phone. "Alright, now," the man yelled into his phone with a Southern accent, "I can hear yer better now. Reception inside the gym is terrible. You won't know, though, 'cos you ain't got the nerve to come here and give me that there check ya owe me."

He didn't notice I was there until he walked my way and bumped into me. He gave me an angry glare. "I'mma hafta call you back," the man told the person on the other end of the line. "Don't think that I'm lettin' you off the hook, now, ya heard!"

The man shut his phone and stuffed it in his pocket, then sneered at me. "What ya think yer doin', solicitin' my here gym?" he scolded me. "The nerve of you teenagers!"

_This must be Clay,_ I figured. "Sorry, Mr. Clay, sir," I apologized. "I—I didn't mean to irritate you."

"Sorry ain't gon' cut it!" he shouted. "It's you youngins—always causing trouble, always bein' rude! If you wanted ta challenge me in this here gym, then you better look for 'nother gym to challenge, cos I ain't gon' battle no snot-nosed kid!"

Clay's temper began to annoy me. To save myself from any more of his cross words, I whipped the Bolt Badge from my pocket and shoved it in front of his face. "Oh," he said, "whadda we got here? A Bolt Badge? You that girl that Elesa told me about—Cecilia, was it?"

I nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Yer the one intertwined in all of that Team Plasma madness, right? Must say, I'm impressed by how far ya come. Them Plasmas just gettin' more 'n' more persistent."

"You have no idea."

"Tell ya what: I'll forgive ya fer yer behavior and letcha battle me _if_ ya tell me more about this Plasma stuff."

"Fine." _Hypocrite._

"Well, dandy! Follow me into the gym 'n' we'll get started."

And so I did.

**-x-**

The battle was extremely close. His Krokorok was unbelievably strong, and his Excadrill was incredibly swift. Don't even get me started on Palpitoad. My Pokedex's screen told me that it was a water and ground type. I thought that Grace's Shock Wave would work, based off of the fact that water types are weak to electric-type moves, but it did absolutely _nothing_. I really thought that I was going to lose the battle because of Palpitoad, but I managed to whittle his health down enough to cause the Pokemon to faint. Still, it was close. Grace and Seattle easily got wiped out battling the Pokemon, and Delilah barely pulled it off.

"Palpitoad," Clay announced with his heavily-accented voice, "y'all come back, now."

He returned his Pokemon back into his Pokeball, then looked at me. "You sure put up a good fight," he told me. "Now I understand how ya could fight off them Plasmas fer so long. Now, I wanna hear more 'bout yer Plasma encounters, or else ya won't getch yer badge."

I explained everything (by this point, it was getting annoying to have to tell every third person about this stuff). Clay seemed interested. "We-heh-l," he admitted, "sounds like yer journey's been excitin' so far. It's almost like one-a them dramatic romances I keep hearin' so much about—the ones about the couple that can't be together cos' of thur backgrounds. (Not that I'd know much about those kinds er stories er anything.)" I raised an eyebrow. He added: "Sounds like you and that N character got a thing fer each other."

"What?" I denied. "Me? And—and him?" _Why is this old dude talking to me about romance? Sure. That's not weird._

"Say what'cha want," he replied, shrugging a bit and lifting his palms into the air at the same time. "You better mozy yer way over to Mistralton City, in my opinion. Yer next gym battle be thar. Ya need to pass through Chargestone Cave, too; that place is a puzzle, I tell yer! Thar was a Garvantulerr web in front-a the entrance, but I got rid of it. It was causin' a commotion, and I wouldn't hear the durn end of it. It'll take you some time to figger yer way through it, so I'd hurry."

"Thanks, sir," I said to him. "Can I have my badge, now?"

He walked over to a rusty bucket and pulled out a token and handed it to me. I looked at it, thinking, _He keeps his badges in that thing? _I stuck it in my badge case and began to head towards the mining elevator that would take me back to the gym's entrance.

"Good luck with that there Team Plasma stuff!" he shouted to me. "Chargestone Cave's off-a Route Six. Make sure ya stock up on supplies, and watch out fer them Plasmas!"


	42. Cave In

I followed Clay's advice and stocked up on supplies before heading out to Chargestone Cave. When I had entered the cavern, I couldn't believe my eyes. The interior was musty and damp, like many caves, but it was brightly illuminated with some sort of blue light. Sapphire expanded across the cavern, emanating from floating blue stones, reaching every wall and reflecting upon bits of quartz and other minerals that were embedded within the walls. It was rather beautiful. However, for some reason, being inside of the cave made the hairs on my arms stand up on end.

A dual gear-like Pokemon approached me and blinked as it stared me down. "H-hello?" I asked.

"Klink!" it screeched in a startled, robotic voice. I quickly whipped out my Pokedex, hoping that I'd be able to record the Pokemon's information in it, but by the time I had it out of my bag, the Pokemon was gone.

I kept my Pokedex in my hand, as if I expected to see the little guy again.

I began wandering. Believe me, I had no freaking idea where I was going. All I knew was that I was trying to find the exit, which I assumed to be somewhere north of where I was in the cave. As I roamed, I found more of those gear Pokemon that I had seen back at the entrance-Klink, I believed they were called.

Hours later, I found myself in a narrow hallway with a passage in the back of it. I saw bright sunlight that was beaming through the exit. _Mistralton City!_ I thought with joy.

When I was merely approximately 200 feet from the escape, a pile of rocks fell down right in front of the exit. I turned around to try to backtrack my way out, but right as I was about to escape the corridor, another pile of rocks fell down, trapping me inside the passageway.

Once both exits were blocked, the lights dimmed a bit, as there weren't as many of those glowing pillars here as there were in other parts of the cave. An ominous evil cackling echoed off of the isolated walls—as if from out of nowhere. That alone left me panicked.

What _really_ scared me was the realization that I had made. As the cackling persisted, I thought to myself, _This sounds vaguely familiar..._

Then, Ghetsis came into a blurry focus. Just the person I needed to see.

"What do _you_ want _this time_?" I snapped.

He chuckled. "The same thing that I've wanted since the beginning: you out of the way. Now give me the Dark Stone."

I backed up a few feet. Ghetsis followed as I did so.

Ghetsis' voice became more assertive. "Give me. The Dark Stone. Now."

I backed up even more, eventually hitting the avalanche of rocks behind me. Ghetsis was still walking towards me. I was too nervous to run, and even if I had the courage to do so, there was nowhere to run anyhow.

As he approached me, he growled through his teeth, "You were once an important asset to this operation, but now you've become a threat. N's ideals are changing, and it's all _your fault_. If he doesn't fully believe that Pokemon and humans need to be separated, then my whole plan is _ruined!_ It's all because you seduced him with your innocence. Twice I tried to get rid of you, but both times you made a comeback. You escaped me back in Castelia, and then again in Nimbasa (thanks to that meddling Elesa). However, there's nowhere for you to run or hide this time. I have you cornered."

By the time Ghetsis was directly in front of me, staring me down straight in the eye, his calloused face showing definitive rage as he did so, I felt a rumbling from behind me. The rocks that trapped me in the corridor were beginning to shake violently. I knew that if I stood there long enough that I would be killed, so I decided to make a daring move. I pushed against Ghetsis with all my strength. I knocked him off balance for a brief moment, which was all I needed to be able to make a run for the opposite end of the cavern. Once he was stable again, he stomped over to where I was standing.

Then the rocks fell before he could get close enough to me. They collapsed onto the cavern floor, breaking and cracking as they did so. Ghetsis was close enough to the rocks to have gotten an injury, but he was unscathed regardless.

The sunlight poured back into the cave. I was able to see more clearly.

Of course, the first thing I saw was Ghetsis furiously running towards me again, except this time he had a sharp, pointed stone fragment in his hands. I recoiled as an early precaution. _I suppose this is the end of my journey_, I thought.

Right as Ghetsis was close enough and about to drive that dangerous stone into my flesh, I closed my eyes and prayed to see N's face again. As I envisaged his face in my mind, I heard a thud come from in front of me.

I opened my eyes. August was laying on top of Ghetsis, using all of the weight in her dainty, fourteen-year-old body to keep him down. N ran into the scene and came over to me. He hugged me tightly, and I didn't fight it. I put my arms around him as well. "Thank Reshiram and Zekrom that we made it on time," he said with sincere gratitude. "I-I don't know what I would've done with myself if we were too late to save you."

I wanted to cry with joy, but hey, I'm not here to tell you the story of some stupid high school drama.

However, I will tell you this.

We leaned in and kissed right then and there.

And it was probably the best moment of my life.


	43. I Like Planes

"Guys," August grunted as she tried to keep Ghetsis down, "sorry to interrupt your romantic moment and all, but _I can't keep this brute down forever._"

N backed away from me and blushed, and I blushed as well. "You should get out of here and get going. Mistralton's not too far; it's only about a half mile up the road. I-I'll meet you there."

I smiled. "Sounds like a plan." I ran out as fast as I could. As lovestruck as I was at the moment, I knew that August was right: she couldn't restrain Ghetsis forever. From my firsthand experiences, I knew that he was incredibly strong. (After all, he _did_ try to drive a stone into my skull. What a—

Sorry. I shouldn't use that kind of language. Never mind what I was about to say.)

I made it to Mistralton City safe and sound. One look at the city made me think with awe, "This really is something."

I had never seen a city quite like it. Upon the first glimpse of the city, Mistralton appeared to be a very lax village. Flowers sprouted from near and far, and in different colors, too. However, upon closer examination, I noticed a large, street-like path that was off to the west end of the town. There was a tower located in the same area as the path, and on the path were certain types of aircraft. (I wasn't familiar with aircraft of any variety, mostly because Snowpoint's weather patterns would make flying in and out of the Unovan city nearly impossible.) It was a rather unique sight.

For a good five minutes, I just stood there and stared at the city, especially the aircraft landing strip. Then, someone walked up to me and pointed out "You look like you've never seen an airport before."

I turned around and saw Alder. I hadn't seen him since our encounter at Route Five. "The weather in Snowpoint wasn't a suitable place for planes to land," I explained, "and I never really got to see much of Sinnoh to begin with. I got here by boat."

"Interesting," he mused. "How has your journey been since I last saw you?"

"Rather humdrum, honestly." _Lies, _I thought.

"Really? Well, maybe I can bring you some excitement."

"Wait, what?"

"Just follow me."

So I did what Alder said. He ended up leading me to the airport control tower; the area was meant to be restricted to anyone who didn't actually work at the airport, but Alder got us in because, well, he's Alder. Simply put.

I got to see every aspect of the control tower. It was extremely fascinating, but the most bewildering part of the building was the top: a dome-like structure with a vast window stretching around the entire dome. People sat at tables that wrapped around the perimeter of the room. Each person had a special job to make sure that each plane landed safe and sound. I didn't want to talk to anyone because I figured that they were working.

Although, that eventually changed as I walked around the room to observe what each worker was doing. At one of the seats, crouched over the laptop of a keyboard, was a brunette with braids that were crafted in a way that they almost looked strangely familiar.

And then it hit me.

"Candice?" I shouted with joy. (The people working around us gave us a loud, "_SHHHHHH!"_ I could've sworn that one or two of them muttered something like, "Stupid kid...")

My sister got up from her seat and looked down at me. "Miss me?" she asked.

"Candice, how did you get here?"

Alder interjected with, "Well, not too long after we met, I got a call from Elesa about a promising young talent from Snowpoint who had just battled at her gym earlier that day. (I assumed that she had been talking about you, since we don't get too many foreigners from Sinnoh here in Unova.) She said that her sister was the gym leader there. So, I figured that I'd do you a favor. Save you the pain of homesickness and stuff.

"I knew from the moment that I met you that you had a specific quality that somewhat caught my eye. I haven't put all of the pieces together, but something about you clicked into this sort of mental puzzle in my mind. You seemed observant, considerate, jubilant—all qualities that reminded me of myself when I was your age. I guess that's what made me want to bring you and your sister back together."

"Alder called me about two days ago," Candice added. "He said that he had met you somewhere and wanted to see if I was interested in meeting up with you in Mistralton City. I said yes without even thinking, and, along with help from Mom, Dad, and Juniper, we kept the thing a secret and organized my arrival here. The plane just landed about an hour ago."

I gave my sister a big hug. "Arceus, I missed you so so so so much!"

She hugged me back, and once we had finished our hug, I turned to Alder and said, "Thanks for doing this for me, even though you hardly even know me."

"Just because one hardly knows someone doesn't mean that he or she can't be a good samaritan every once in a while. Separation hurts—believe me." Alder zoned out for a moment. It was as if he was having a flashback of something.

"You okay, man?"

He snapped out of his memory recap and said to me, "Oh, yeah, fine."

I remembered about the autograph that I got for my sister. I pulled it out of my bag and gave it to her, saying, "Here, I got this for you back in Nimbasa."

Candice gave a good look at it and looked as if she wanted to explode. "For me?" she squealed. "This is incredible! You battled her?"

"Yup, yup," I told her. _But that's not the whole story_, I thought.

"Thankyouthankyouthankyou!"

Candice gave me a tight squeeze and let go. _Looks like we just made each other's day,_ I thought.

"I'll leave you two to bond," Alder announced. He turned around to leave.

But then I stopped him. "Alder!" I called. He turned around. "Thanks."

He smiled warmly, and then he began to head downstairs.


	44. YAY, INTERRUPTIONS! 8D

_**A/N** - Sorry that I haven't written in so long! I blame school. LOL. At least it's almost Christmas break. ^_^ If I don't get the chance to write again until after Christmas, then Merry Christmas, everyone! :D_

_I also want to apologize for the shortness of the chapter, but hey, it's a chapter, right? :D_

* * *

><p>My sister and I decided to spend the afternoon talking with each other at the Mistralton Pokemon Center.<p>

"So how's your journey been going, Cece?" she asked me.

_Should I tell her? Should I _not_ tell her?_ I thought.

I told her, "It's been really interesting. All of the gym leaders here are so talented, but you could probably beat them all easy."

She smiled. "Thanks, sis. I still can't believe that you got to meet Elesa! That's just incredible!"

"The fact that I almost lost was incredible, too," I told her. "She's really good."

"Figures. I mean, she _is_ Elesa."

I then asked her, "So Candice, how long are you going to be in Unova?"

"A few days," she said. "Maybe a week or so. I figured that I'd hang out with you for a day or two, then travel to Castelia and head home from there. Maybe battle a few gym leaders along the way. Meet Elesa for myself. That kind of thing."

I recalled what Elesa had written on her autograph for Candice: _"Maybe we'll get to battle one day._"

"That sounds great! Just be careful of Clay. He's the gym leader of Driftveil City. He's a short fuse."

"Like Delilah?"

"Worse."

"I heard that!" yelled Delilah from her Pokéball.

I rolled my eyes. Simultaneously, my sister and I said, "Oh, Delilah."

Being with my sister made me feel more at home. It kinda made me forget about everything that had happened. But I still remembered N. Everything about him was indelibly etched into my mind: his personality, his deeds...his eyes.

Just the thought of his eyes was enough to make me lose focus on the conversation I was having with my sister. "Cece," my sister asked me, "are you okay? You look...distracted."

_Drat_, I thought. _She noticed._

"It's nothing," I lied. "I'm just...tired. And homesick. I'm glad to see you again, sis."

Candice smiled. But, deep down inside, I had the feeling that she wanted to know what the heck was going on. I didn't want to tell her, though. Not yet.

**-x-**

"Good moooooorning~!" trilled my sister's voice the following day. I woke up, startled. I didn't sleep well that night. My dreams were filled with N. It was as if I missed him more than my sister. _I blame the kiss_, I thought. "Geez," my sister said to me, "you look like a herd of Tauros attacked you. Nightmares?"

"Something like that..." I muttered.

My sister didn't quite hear what I had said. "What?"

"Nothing."

Candice smiled. She beamed, "Peachy! Get some clothes on. Let's go out for breakfast. I'll pay-my treat!"

_Food_, I thought. _Maybe food will help me get N off of my mind._

**-x-**

We went to a cute little diner down the road from the Pokemon Center. It had a warm, home-y atmosphere, and it smelled like bacon. Bacon's my dad's favorite food. This fact added to the diner's home-y atmosphere. As did the fact that Candice was here with me. It almost was like I hadn't left home.

"So, tell me some more about your journey."

I was in the middle of drinking water when she had said this. I gulped the water down loudly. _Oh snap_, I thought. _What can I tell her without telling her everything_?

Then the perfect thing happened.

"Cecilia?"

I whip my head around, and only to see my old friend August waving at me.

"I made a friend along the way," was the last thing I told my sister before I went to meet August.


	45. That Awkward Moment When

I had so much to ask August. It was unfortunate that she found me in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Needless to say, we hugged anyhow. As we did, I whispered in August's ear, "Don't tell my sister _anything_ about _anything_."

She whispered back, "I could get fired for that. Why would I?"

After we finished hugging, August looked over my shoulder, acting as if she didn't notice that Candice was there to begin with. "Hey, that's your sister over there, right?"

"Hi, Cece's friend," my sister awkwardly greeted.

"Hello..." August began to say. I whispered my sister's name into her ear, and she finished her greeting. "...Candice! Candice! Right. Nice to meet you in person."

My sister and my friend shook hands. It was kind of weird, to tell you the truth. Everything was weird after I had found out August's secret. Heck, I _still _don't know what to call her. "It's a pleasure to meet you!" August beamed. "I've never been to Sinnoh, but the fact that you're a gym leader is fascinating nonetheless. It's an honor."

"I'm glad to get to meet you, too," Candice replied. "It's nice to know that my sister had a friend to keep her company. Thanks for that." My sister smiled. An expression came across her face. She noticed something. "Wait, why weren't you here yesterday when I arrived?"

"We, uh..." August was stuck.

"August and I got separated in Chargestone Cave. It's dark in there, man. And creepy. Almost sinister," I explained. It wasn't a lie. It just wasn't the _whole_ truth. August and I exchanged a wink-a tacit sign that subtly revealed that we knew something she didn't.

"Are you also heading for the Pokemon League, August?" my sister asked.

"Yes," was her response. I'm only two badges away from being eligible to compete there. I would've had all of the badges already, but I decided to take my time with it and backtrack for a while. I'm also a chronic procrastinator, so I guess that can be another valid excuse as to why I haven't gotten all of my badges yet."

My sister and I giggled.

"And Cece, how is your journey going?"

"I'm three away from the Pokemon League. My next gym leader can be found right in this town."

"How about you battle me before you battle her?"

"What? Really?" I was surprised. I'd never really battled my sister before then.

"Sure. I feel you're ready."

"Great, let's go!"

I was about to get up, but then August was poking my shoulder, whispering, "Cece, look behind you," to which I'd reply, "Not now."

I wasn't quite sure what was so urgent at the moment...until my sister snapped me back into reality, that is. "Cecilia," Candice said with an interested tone of voice, "looks like a cute guy is checking you out over there."

"What cute guy?" I asked.

"Cecilia," August whispered into my ear. "It's you-know-who..."

My head whipped around. I saw N, leaning against a wall, smiling at me as he did. _Agh. Why_ now? I thought. Again, wrong place, wrong time. August slapped her face with her palm. "I'll go make the first move," I told my sister in a hushed voice.

"ATTA GIRL! Candice taught you well. Now, go get him!"

I warily walked over to N. The first thing I whispered to him was, "Act natural. My sister's over there. Don't let her know anything about what's going on. In the meanwhile, let's make it look like we're trying to make small talk."

"O...kay?" N tried to comprehend. "So...how are you?" he asked me with some uncertainty. I could tell small talk wasn't his thing.

"Good. And you?"

"...Fine. I suppose this is a bad time?"

I looked over my shoulder to see my sister staring at me. She gave me a thumbs up and mouthed the words, "You're doing great!"

As much as I loved my sister, I never expected her to be so obnoxious at a time like that.

I focused back on N. "Very," I confirmed.

There was an awkward silence. I began thinking about what happened back in Chargestone Cave and blushed. N blushed soon after.

"So," N said, "I guess I'll see you later."

"Sounds good."

He walked out the front door of the diner. However, as he did, something unusual happened. In my mind, I heard him say, _"Try to meet me behind the control tower at noon."_

_That's not weird at all..._ I thought to myself. _Did N really just penetrate my thoughts?_

N mentally replied, _"Yes, yes I did."_

I walked back over to my sister. "Sooooooo," Candice asked nosily, "how did it go?"

"He said he'll see me around," I told her.

"Oh, please," she reacted, sounding somewhat displeased with the results of my conversation, "you can do better than that. You're my sister."

"We both felt awkward with you staring at us," I explained. "That's why it didn't work."

"Nonsense. He must not be the right guy for you is all. We'll find you another." I swear, I almost died laughing when she said that. "So, let's go back to the Pokemon Center. You need to freshen yourself up so you're prepared the next time a guy crosses your path."

Candice pranced off towards the door. I realized that we hadn't paid for our meal, so I tried to call out to her, "Wait, Candice, we still need to pay the-"

Candice was already gone by then. "-bill," I finished.

"I'll pay for it," August offered. "It'll make up for the awkward conversation she caused."

"Thanks," I told her.

I asked for the bill, and the waitress placed it gently on the table. As August took care of the payment, I looked out one of the restaurant's front windows. It was cheerful and bright outside. I hoped this would be the end to my troubles that day.


	46. Here is the Place Where I Love You

**_A/N_**_—This may be either the sappiest chapter in any fanfiction you'll ever read, or it will be the most emotionally moving one you'll ever read. But it's a longer chapter than my more recent ones. And it was cute to write. :)_

* * *

><p>It was almost noon. I was at the Pokemon Center. Candice was straightening my hair, which was weird, because my hair isn't very wavy to begin with. I needed to get away from Candice, and fast. N was waiting. I needed to talk to him.<p>

"Are we almost done?" I asked Candice. "I want to go hang out with August for a bit—not to be rude or anything. Just wanna catch up for a bit."

"Why can't _we_ catch up for a bit?"

"You left me with the bill. I think you owe me for that. Well, August paid for it, actually, so you owe her. But still. You just ran off so you could get ready to make me look nice. Why do I even need to look nice? Why did you even bring a hair straightener?"

"I wasn't going to let Dad tell you that you can't get a boyfriend while you were here. I needed to help with that." She winked at me. "I am sorry about leaving you with the bill, though. Fine. I'll let you two hang out. I'll go challenge Skyla or something while you're out anyhow. Gym leader versus gym leader. _Hermana a hermana_."

"Since when is being a gym leader like being in a sisterhood?"

"All of the gym leaders of the world are like an extended family. Doesn't mean we are, though. Roark and Byron are actually related, so this relationship is actually literal in their case."

"That's interesting. Look, I need to hurry. I told August I'd meet her in Route 7 so we could train together."

"Alright, I'll stop straightening your hair. You're in a hurry, and your hair is going to get messed up anyhow." She put the straightener down.

"Okay, bye!" I ran out of the room, grabbing my backpack as I did.

**-x-**

I had made it behind the control tower. I checked my surroundings to see if my sister had followed me by any chance, but she wasn't in sight. _Thank Arceus_, I thought.

I checked again just to be sure.

N came out from what seemed to be nowhere. "Your sister's not here, right?" he asked.

I confirmed, "No. I checked. Twice."

"Good. Let's sit down, shall we?"

We sat on the grass, leaning our backs against the control tower. "So, what happened after I ran off?"

N told me everything. Once I was gone, Ghetsis managed to get up, causing August to hit one of the cave's walls in the process. While she was down, Ghetsis tried to make a mistake. Before Ghetsis could get away, N confronted him, telling him that he should stop trying to hurt me because I was important to their cause. Ghetsis made no promises (especially since he saw us kiss and didn't believe that N wanted to protect me just so they could fulfill their goal) and ran off, but before he did, he told N that I was only useful to the cause because I have the Dark Stone. N tried to defend me by saying that the stone chose me for a reason (believe me, I didn't want that responsibility in the first place), but Ghetsis wouldn't hear it and began to walk away. As he did that, he told N that he would keep sending grunts to retrieve him every time he broke away. The villain's last words were, "We'll bring you back to your senses, child." N helped August up, and they decided that they needed to get past all of their differences and work together. August knew that she could be risking her position in the International Police this way, but she could back up this alliance in a logical way, so it wasn't an impractical idea. She agreed, and N helped patch up August's scratches and cuts from when Ghetsis sent her flying. They made camp for the night and agreed to split up and look for me when they got to Mistralton.

"So when you came walking into the diner, you didn't expect August to be there?"

"Not at all. But I sensed you were there. Just not your sister. She was...a surprise."

"Believe me, you have no idea."

"She can't know about this."

"Way ahead of you on that one."

We were quiet a few moments. "T-thanks for saving me again," I told him.

"You're welcome," he said. "I couldn't let him do that to you, no matter how influential he is in my cause. Thanks for, um...thanks for...for..." Either N wanted to talk about the kiss or he wanted to talk about our friendship. Either was fine with me, but I'd rather talk about friendship. Much less awkward. "Uh, I'm sorry. I may be extremely intelligent, but my friendship skills are lacking. I never really had any friends until I met you.  
>It's weird; I have this feeling inside of me. It's affectionate and pulling me to you like a magnet to metal. I only feel it when I'm around you. Is it friendship?"<p>

"Something like that," I told him, giving him a smile. I rested my head on his shoulder.

As we sat there in a serene silence, a Pidove came over to us. It sat on N's lap and sang, "Pidove~"

Then came more Pidove, followed by some other Pokemon that I wasn't familiar with. First was this yellow, Psyduck-like Pokemon wrapped in a giant leaf. "Come here, little Sewaddle," N said to the Pokemon. "You're safe with me." The Sewaddle sat on the side of N that was opposite from where I was sitting. The Pokemon squat down there.

Next was a Pokemon that reminded me of a Skitty or a Meowth or something along those lines. It was purple, small, and, to be honest, extremely adorable. "You're more than welcome here, too, little Purrloin."

Then N welcomed this green woodland Pokemon, which he called a Deerling. Then came a Watchog, an Emolga, and what N called a Blitzle (which I assumed was the earlier form of a Zebstrika—like the one Elesa has). They seemed to be drawn to N. They all looked so happy with him. "Do you feel the same way when you're with Pokemon?" I asked N.

"When Pokemon come to me," N explained, "I feel a different feeling. I feel their pain and suffering. I feel sympathy for them. I hear their hearts, their emotions, their pleas, their complaints. They come to me because I understand them. I welcome them as if they were acquaintances. Maybe this is what friendship feels like, and maybe what I feel for you is something closely linked, but different nonetheless." I smiled. "But I love Pokemon—all of them—and when they come to me, I don't turn them down."

I smiled. And then it hit me: _Maybe N is only a part of this plot because of this connection he has with Pokemon. He's got good intentions and, therefore believes that he will not be doing the world any wrong by liberating Pokemon from humans. That's why Ghetsis is using him. These feelings made him vulnerable to Ghetsis' evil scheme._

"Maybe that's why I'm so drawn to you. When I see your Pokemon, I listen to their thoughts and their words. Sure, they may have complaints or concerns every now and again, but nothing in this world is flawless. But they all love you. They respect you. They're glad that you welcomed them into your 'extended family.' Even Delilah thinks this, regardless of the way she acts towards you at times.  
>Remember when you caught Celeste back at the Dreamyard? At first, I was worried. I told you not to catch the Pokemon—to let her roam free—but you still took her in with you. It worked out for the better, though. She found a friend in you. She saw you to be her hero. When she helped you restrain Ghetsis' grunts back at the ferris wheel, Celeste helped you not because you asked her to, but because she loves you. She was in pain—and that was my main concern at the time—but she did it all to help you, and I realize that now. I just wonder why you're the only trainer that I've seen this in. This feeling of hope, of compassion—I have only found it in you and you alone. Maybe that's why Zekrom chose you. It must admire you for these traits. I admire you for these traits."<p>

I blushed. The Purrloin came up to me and rubbed its head against my leg, then hopped onto my lap and sat down there. It began to purr. I smiled.

"And not only that," N continued, "but you pick your Pokemon not because they're powerful, but because you admire them. Like me, you feel sympathy for them. Like with Celeste.  
>Tell me, how did you and Delilah meet anyhow?"<p>

I explained the story to N. He seemed fascinated. "It's incredible how fate works."

"It is. If it weren't for fate, I wouldn't have met you." N blushed this time.

Everything was perfect. There were no distractions, no grunts running after us, and no nosy sisters. Just us, Pokemon, and nature.

Just perfect.

To this day, I still wish every day could be like that one.


	47. Good Day Gone Bad

It was getting late. I knew that I needed to get back to the Pokemon Center soon before the sun descended below the horizon. But I still had a question for N: "I've told you a bunch about myself. Why not tell me a little bit more about yourself?"

N took a deep breath. "It's a complicated story," he confessed. "What do you want to know?"

"I dunno. Anything. Something."

Another deep breath. "I never really knew my birth parents. I don't know where I came from or who I am, to be honest. I was told that I had been taken care of by Pokemon before my stepfather took me in as his own. But once I was taken in by him, I was left to entertain myself, with only a Zorua and unlimited stacks of toys to keep me company. It was...sad. Very sad. And lonely. Very lonely. But then I ran away, lived with Pokemon for a few years, and found myself at peace. Then my stepfather found me again, and I was trapped once more." He sniffled. "Then..." He took a deep sigh. "...Ghetsis invited me to join his cause: to create a better world for both people and Pokemon. To achieve Pokemon liberation. To ease all of the world's tensions. Because I had spent so many years living amongst Pokemon, I understood their pain. I discovered that I could hear their thoughts. I learned to comprehend their language. I knew that this was my life's goal: to free Pokemon from tyranny. But sometimes I feel like Ghetsis has a whole other agenda."

_That's because he does,_ I thought to myself. _He's the real tyrant. Not trainers. Not the world. Ghetsis._

"I don't want to give up, though," N said in conclusion. "Ghetsis made me king of Team Plasma. He must listen to me whether he wants to or not. I don't care if he's older than me. I don't care if he's defiant. He can't tell me what to do."

I imbibed N's words for a moment. We sat there in silence.

"...I should probably go now," I told him. "It's getting late. I don't want Candice getting worried. Or suspicious."

"I wish you didn't have to go."

"I wish I didn't have to, either. I really enjoyed this. We should do it again sometime."

"We should."

I popped up from off the ground and stabilized myself. I looked up at the purple-orange sky and took a deep breath. Then I began walking.

About a yard's worth of steps later, N jumped off of the ground and ran over to me. He gave me the warm embrace of a hug. His heart whispered to mine, "Don't leave."

So I stood there a bit longer and let N have his moment. _Candice can wait a few more minutes, _I thought.

**-x-**

"Candice? Hello?" I called out as I wandered around the Pokemon Center. "Candice? Are you there?"

As I scurried in front of the main desk, the nurse at the counter asked me, "Are you talking about the foreign gym leader that's staying here?"

"Yes," I confirmed. "She's my sister. I stepped out for a while to be with a friend, I came back, and now I can't find her."

"How fascinating! You're a foreigner, too?"

"Yeah, yeah. But did you see my sister?"

"She should be here. She stepped out for about an hour, and she came back not too long ago."

"Okay, thanks."

"Have a great day!"

I ran off and tracked down our cabin. I entered the room and saw an Arceus-awful mess in front of me. That in itself was a problem. Candice is too much of a neat freak to do that.

"Cecilia!" August's voice called from down the hall.

I peeked my head out the doorway and looked down the hallway, where my petite friend was running towards me. Something was wrong. "What's going—?"

I brought my body all the way out into the hallway. August, dressed in her Summer attire, stopped in front of me, then bent over to pant frantically. She probably had been looking for me for a while.

"Your sister..." Summer said in between breaths, "...she...Team Plasma...gone...must find..."

"_What?_"

Summer sat down on the hallway floor. She took an extremely long, deep breath and told me, "Some Team Plasma grunts broke into your cabin. They probably wanted you and the Dark Stone, but found your sister here instead. I just saw them carrying her off into Route 7."

"Great," I moaned. "_Just great!_ Of course. I didn't want her to find out about this whole thing, and she's forced to find it out the hard way. FOR THE LOVE OF ARCEUS, WHY DOES THIS JOURNEY HAVE TO BE SO IRRITATING?"

"Look, we gotta bolt. If we don't find her soon, we'll have bigger problems on our hands. And on our hands, I mean mine. I could get fired just for letting her get snatched up like that. Plasma could be preparing a trap, for all we know."

"How does that worsen the situation?"

"You're probably the bait."


	48. Triad's a Party

Summer and I were running like madmen. We'd been searching for my sister for a good thirty minutes, and we hadn't even found a footprint that could send us in the right direction. I was about to lose it. Summer, on the other hand, was pretty calm.

Until she yelled at me, "TAKE A CHILL PILL! WE'LL FIND HER."

I muttered under my breath, "Arceus. Could that have been any more ironic?"

Summer took a deep breath. "Maybe we'd be better off splitting up."

"Sure. Let's do that. I'll go east; you go west."

"Good plan. Let's move out."

I took a few steps and realized that it was getting to be a bit too dark to go this route alone. I sent out both Celeste and my Pokedex. As Celeste scurried to my head, I searched through my Pokedex to find out what moves Celeste knew. _Please let Flash be one of them. Please let Flash be one of them._

A list of moves appeared on screen: Psychic, Hypnosis, and Flash. "Yes!" I exclaimed with joy. I looked up at Celeste and told her, "Use Flash, please."

Celeste must've not enjoyed the darkness either, because she instantly used the move to illuminate our way. Everything was clearer. I could actually see where my feet were stepping. I could actually see that I almost walked into a tree. _Arceus, that was close_.

I continued moving in an easterly direction. I still saw nothing: not a footstep, not a trinket. The entire route was dead silent as well: not a whistle, not a scream.

I could hear N's voice in my mind. _"Cecilia, watch out. I just found out Ghetsis sent some grunts out to retrieve the Dark Stone. Keep on your toes."_

_I know already, _I thought in response. _They have my sister._

_"Well, then be even more cautious. Ghetsis is the kind of person who would_—_"_

_—use someone as bait. Yeah, I know._

_"Where are you?"_

_Eastern part of Route 7. Why?_

_"I'm looking for you. I don't want you getting hurt."_

_Me? Get hurt? Please. I'll be fine._

I could practically see N rolling his eyes. He had a point, though: I had run into too much trouble since I had come to Unova. I needed to watch out.

"Mun!" Celeste cried.

I looked up. "What is it? You see something?"

"Mun! Mun!" She curled up into a ball and stopped using Flash. I figured that something must've spooked her, and that she probably needed to meditate for a bit, so I sent her back into her Pokeball. I threw her ball and the Pokedex back into my bag.

I heard a rustling and ignored it. As I moved forward, I ran into something and fell to the ground. I popped up from off the ground, dusted myself off, and turned to the right. I began walking again. The rustling returned, but it came from somewhere closer in proximity. I cautiously continued forward until I bumped into something else. I turned around 180 degrees and walked forward once more. The rustling was even closer. I bumped into something else. But it wasn't a something; it was a someone. A someone who grabbed me by the arms tightly. I tried to wriggle my arms free, but it wasn't working. I tried to scream, but then another someone gagged my mouth. A rope bound my hands.

And suddenly I lost conciousness.

**-x-**

I was floating in a dream. I saw a mirage of N, who was dressed in royal garments and had a crown carefully affixed on his head. He looked angry as he paced back and forth. He probably was one step away from throwing a chair at someone or something.

A grunt walked into the room. "Lord N," he said.

Before the grunt could say any more, N yelled out, "I WANT TO HEAR NONE OF IT. Bring Ghetsis to me."

"But—"

"NOW!"

"Alright!" The grunt timidly scurried off.

N resumed pacing nervously. I wanted to call out to him, but my voice had been completely eradicated in this dream.

Ghetsis walked into the scene. "Yes, my lord?" he asked respectfully as he kneeled.

"Oh, don't give me any of that 'my lord' crap! Something's wrong, and I know it's your fault!"

"What are you talking about, Lord N?" There was a sinister glimmer in Ghetsis' exhausted eyes. His face was as calloused as usual, but he surprisingly showed some false sympathy in his expression. Just a hint of it.

"Cecilia. I can't talk to her. My mind suddenly has been completely shut off from hers. I knew something bad was going to her. I wish I had the chance to find her, but _you_ and your stupid minions got in the way before I had the chance!"

"You can't be chasing after love in the middle of our plot! I needed her out of the way. She's not dead; just...detained. I sent my best field agents to retrieve her and keep her in an undisclosed location somewhere off of Route 7. They'll lock her there until after we're done. I told them not to worry about the Dark Stone. Turns out that we don't need it anyhow. We just need you and your Light Stone."

"I'm going to look for her."

A mob of grunts blocked the only exit.

Ghetsis gave him a sly smile and said, "You're not getting off that easy. Guards, blockade the door. Keep him from escaping. You should know the rest."

The villain chuckled evilly and sauntered out of the room. N fell to the ground and began expressing both rage and depression.

That's all I saw.

**-x-**

I opened my eyes and saw three masked figures dressed like ninjas. All I could see of them were their matching grey eyes and silver hair. They were scrutinizing my appearance. "Who are you guys?"

"We," they said in unison, "are the Shadow Triad: faithful servants of Ghetsis, head sage and future ruler of Unova."

"Wait, what? _Ghetsis? _Future ruler? What is going—"

"We've said too much. Doesn't matter, though. You won't be going anywhere for a long time anyhow."


	49. That's Not How I Roll

"Where am I? What's going on? What are you doing to me?"

I looked around at my surroundings. It looked like a barren log cabin with no furnishings—except for the chair that I was apparently tied to, of course. The room was dimly lit, but I was unsure as to how there was any light to begin with. From my dream, I could tell that I was somewhere on the outskirts of Route 7.

"Our master told us that you were a threat to us," the Shadow Triad member on my left explained. "He said you were 'flirting with disaster'—whatever _that_'s supposed to mean."

I knew exactly what it meant.

"He said that you were also interfering in his plot to rule the planet, so he needed some way to get you out of the way until his work has been completed. That's when he decided to call us into action. Our job was to get you here—after all, we are the only members of his operation with enough stealth to accomplish this. The grunts we brought have surrounded the entire house. They're fully armed with Pokemon and are ready to call an attack the moment someone gets close enough to this cabin. Like we said before, you'll be here for a while."

I tried to wriggle free from the bounds. It wasn't working.

"You like that?" the Triad member on my right asked. "It's a special hybrid rope made from genetically altered Sewaddle String Shot material. It's been injected with Dream Mist. Our master told us that you have a special 'bond' with Lord N, so we figured that a hint of Dream Mist extract would be enough to keep you from contacting him. It should shorten out your communication abilities for a while."

Of course, the Dream Mist wasn't able to keep me from seeing things that they wouldn't be able to see.

"We also confiscated your Cross-Tranciever," said the one in the middle. "We left your bag, though. Ghetsis said that the Dark Stone is no longer useful to him, so we had no need or reason to want to rummage through your items. I mean, the most you probably have are a Pokedex, some badges, your Pokeballs, and money, right? They're all useless to us at the moment anyhow."

_Good. Now all I need is for Delilah to pop out unexpectedly._

"And, on that note," the one on the left concluded, "good day. Not like it's going to actually be a good one for you."

A puff of smoke sucked them up. The smoke faded away, and I was alone.

I gave it a few seconds.

Then I said in a hushed tone, "Delilah."

Nothing.

"Delilah," I said again in a slightly louder voice.

Nothing again.

I then remembered that I needed to do something that would _really_ piss her off.

I gulped, then called out, "DEDE!"

My temperamental Froslass popped out of her Pokeball. "NOBODY calls me Dede!" she scolded me. Her finger was pointing at my face.

"Shhh," I warned her.

"What the heck happened to _you_? Did that boyfriend of yours dump you or some—"

"He'snotmyboyfriend," were the words that hurried out of my mouth. I took a deep breath. "Look, it's not N's fault. It's Ghetsis'."

"Who?"

"He works for N, but he's power hungry and crazed. And he's _using_ N."

"Well, N shouldn't be so much of a softie. I mean, he fell for you, right?"

I gave Delilah a menacing glare.

"I'm just saying..."

"Look, just untie me and get me out of here—and quick!"

She tried to rip the ropes off, but it wasn't working. "They're too strong, believe it or not. For String Shot stuff, it's unusually sturdy."

"Try finding Kuchi's Pokeball. He might be able to peck me free."

"I'd rather jump off of a cliff."

"JUSTDOIT."

"Alright. Arceus. Take a chill—"

"IWILLNOTTAKEACHILLPILL."

Delilah rummaged through my bag and pulled out a Pokeball. She enlarged it and threw it up into the air, and out came my aqua-colored feathered friend. "Ducklett!" cried Kuchi.

Delilah took a deep breath and conversed with Kuchi for a moment, and then the water-and-flying type knew what to do. He sat on my shoulder and began to nibble at the rope. He thought that it tasted disgusting, but he was making progress. Before I knew it, I was free. I took Kuchi off of my shoulder and hugged him. He cooed, "Duck. Ducklett~"

"HEY!" bellowed Delilah. "I could've just left you there!"

"Oh, come here," I told her. I cradled Kuchi in my right arm, then got up so I could hug Delilah in the left one. "You don't know how grateful I am to have you guys." As a thanks for having Delilah help me out, I let go of her, walked over to Kuchi's Pokeball (which was on the floor), and sent the Ducklett back. I then ran over to Delilah and gave her a real hug.

I decided that N was right: Delilah _does_ love me. I didn't realize that I wasn't appreciating her as much as I should've until then. I mean, she can be a pain in the ass at times, but she still had my back there. That was enough to convince me. "Thank you," I told her. "Thank you so much."

"Oh. Sure," she replied. "Whatever. I just did it because—"

"Deep down inside you respect me and care about me?"

"Uh. Yeah. Wait how did you—"

"N," we chimed in unison.

"Maybe he's not that bad of a guy," Delilah started to believe. "But then again, he's dead if he ever tells you something like that again."

I giggled. "Understood. Speaking of N..."

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. _If this worked for him,_ I thought, _then maybe it'll work for me..._

_N,_ I asked mentally as I concentrated with all of my brainpower, _can you hear me?_


	50. On the Wing

_**A/N - **Chapter 50! :D Thanks to all of my readers and reviewers for supporting me this far! I can't wait for you to read all I have in store for the rest of this story, and I can't wait for you all to read the special surprises I have planned for _after_ the story. *wink wink*_

_Sorry if this chapter's a bit depressing in the beginning. I've been listening to "Safe and Sound" by Taylor Swift (from _The Hunger Games_ soundtrack) nonstop for, like, ever. XD_

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><p><em>"Cecilia!" <em>N's mind said to me. _"You're okay! And you were able to contact me! Arceus, I was so worried. I'm still scheming of things to do to Ghetsis once I rule the world."_

_Listen,_ I told him, _he's just using you. I'm not even kidding. The Shadow Triad told me so. _

_"Please. How could he be using me? He won't be able to control Reshiram; I will."_

_Look, your guess is as good as mine. Where are you? I'm trapped in a cabin surrounded by grunts, and I can't think of a safe way out of here._

_"I was hiding out in an abandoned daycare center along the route, but I left once Ghetsis finally told me where you were. Hold on tight. I'll save you."_

I smiled. Then my sister came to mind. _Wait, do you know what happened to my sister?_

_"Hey, you're lucky I was able to find out where you are_. _I bet you she's fine, but Ghetsis has other plans for her. I assume she's still being used as bait._

The word _bait_ stuck in my mind. Then I remembered Summer. I remembered that she could tap into my Cross-tranciever. I remembered that the Shadow Triad had stolen my Cross-tranciever. _Oh no. My Cross-tranciever. The Triad has it. What if they use it to lure in Summer? I mean, August. I mean...UGH._

I wanted to break down and cry. Everything was falling apart so quickly, like a dream inside of a dream. It appeared that N could feel my agony, though. _"Relax. I'll help you sort things out. I promise."_

A tinge of hope warmed my heart. _Thank you_.

That was the end of our conversation. "What's going on?" Delilah asked. "You just spent the last five minutes staring out into space!"

"No," I denied. "I was talking to N. It's like when Grace and I talk telepathically. Except different."

"Different _how,_ exactly?"

"I don't know. I feel different when I connect with him. It's like we become one person for the moment. It's like we were destined to be this way."

**-x-**

We waited. And waited.

Then hope came.

A sound came from outside. Footsteps scampered in a frenzy. One of the grunts asked someone, "Lord N, what's the matter?"

"You figure it out." I heard a thud. The door to the cabin flung open. There was N, minus the royal garments that he wore in my dream. He was angry, but then his eyes locked onto mine, and the fury drifted away. He ran over to me and gave me a hug. I loved his hugs. Especially then. That was when I needed his comfort the most.

"Lord N, why are you fraternizing with the enemy?" a grunt inquired.

"A better question is, why are _you_?"

The grunt backed away from the door and ran off.

All of a sudden, I began to cry. Tears cascaded down my tears and onto N's shirt. I couldn't contain myself. Ghetsis had reached an ultimate low. "Everything..." I mourned, "everything...it's all gone. My sister. My friend. My purpose. I don't even remember why I accepted that stupid research request from Professor Juniper in the first place. I could've stayed home and helped at the gym. I could've journeyed in Sinnoh rather than here. I could've done something great there. Not here. Here is where I suffer. Here is where my dreams have crossed the line. I want to go home."

N grabbed my head and rubbed the back of my ear with his thumb. My head was resting on his chest. "Show no regret. Show no weakness. We'll fix this. I won't leave you until we do."

"_Arceus_, could this be any sappier?" Delilah complained.

N turned his head towards my Pokemon. "Please understand that there is much at stake here, Delilah," N implored. "Either take this a little more seriously or go back in your Pokeball."

She sighed, then mimicked N's last sentence in an annoying voice before retreating to her Pokeball. "She understands," I explained to N, "but she chooses not to admit it. She'll come around."

"I don't really care what she thinks right now, to be brutally honest," N admitted. "I just want _you_ to understand that everything will work out in the end. I promise."

_"Lord N,_" a static-y voice said from somewhere, "_do you read me?"_

N let go of me for a second and picked up the large bead attached to his necklace. He spoke into it, _"_What is it now?"

_"It's time."_

"Wait, what? Now? But where?"

_"Ghetsis said that you must meet him at the Pokemon League this instant. He says this is our only chance to commence with the plot. While she is detained."_

"Copy that."

N then ripped the necklace off of his neck and threw it to the ground with rage. He kicked the charm and sent the necklace flying across the room.

"We must break into the Pokemon League," N announced. "It may sound a bit unorthodox, and you're probably wondering where I'm going with this, but I have a feeling that we'll find your sister and August once we get there."

"I don't care if we have to die doing whatever it is you want to do," I told him, "just as long as my friends make it out alive and free."

"All of our friends are going to be free after this. We must hurry. Let's find a flying-type that can bring us there, first."

I grabbed my bag (first checking to see if my Dark Stone was in there, which it was) and ran out of the cabin with N. We looked around at the surrounding wood. There was nobody in sight, except for a lone Team Plasma grunt, who was knocked unconscious for some reason. "It's a long story," N told me as I stared at the man. "Let's just keep looking for a Pokemon."

N let out a loud whistle. We listened for a few seconds. Then, the cry of a Pokemon sounded: "Brav-i-ary!" it chanted.

It swooped down in front of us: a majestic flying-type with multi-colored feathers and a proud disposition. I pulled out my Pokedex and scanned it. The machine explained, _"Braviary: the Valliant Pokemon. The more scars they have, the more respect these brave soldiers of the sky get from their peers."_

"Does he know fly, though?" I asked.

The Pokedex's display showed the Pokemon's move list. Fly wasn't one of the moves, but there was room for one more move. "Oh," I moaned.

N wasn't concerned. In fact, he was conversing with the Pokemon. When he was done, he explained, "This Braviary wouldn't mind giving us one flight to the Pokemon League, but that's about it. Since he doesn't know Fly, he's unable to take flight with people on his back often, and will only do it once in a blue moon. We got lucky that this Braviary is understanding. Some of them can be a bit prideful and brash, but they're Pokemon. We must learn to work around these mistakes and accept them for who they are."

The Braviary leaned to his side, extending his wing out to us so that the two of us could board. Once N and I were seated on the Pokemon, he took off into the sky. I grabbed onto N's shirt tightly. N had his arms extended outwardly. He let the wind mess up his hair and pass through his fingers. It was one of the very, very few times I had seen him be a free spirit. "I suppose this is your first time riding a flying-type Pokemon?" N asked me.

Nervously, I answered, "Y-yes. I'm scared."

"It's okay. Just hold onto me. We'll be there soon."

We hit some turbulence, and I went from grabbing his shirt to wrapping my arms securely around his stomach. N held onto my hands. I felt actually felt safe for once.


	51. Let's Get Down to Business

"The Pokemon League!" N announced. "It's right below us!"

The Braviary began to descend into the heart of the Pokemon League—the part I shouldn't have had the chance to see for a while. Once the flying-type landed, we disembarked the Pokemon, who flew back into the sky afterwards. We stood on a platform in the center of a large, vacant plaza that branched out into four separate hallways. There was an ominous feel surrounding the area.

"That's weird," N muttered. "There should be a large statue where we're standing."

"There shouldn't even be two inexperienced trainers where the large statue should be," a voice pointed out from afar. I turned around and saw Alder strolling on over to us. "Cecilia, nice to see you again."

"Hey, Alder," I said nervously. "Guess you're probably wondering why we're here and all..."

"That's exactly what I'm wondering."

"Uh, well," I tried to explain. The problem was that I couldn't find the right words. It wasn't like I could've said, _"We just need to break in so that N can help me find everybody that's important in my life. 'Kay, thanks."_

N stepped up to Alder and explained, "The fate of the world and the fate of Cecilia's friend and sister depends on us getting into the inner chamber of the Pokemon League. You need to let us in." In other words, he had just said everything that I thought was a bad idea to say, except using a sophisticated syntax structure.

Alder wasn't going to let us get away that easily. "I'm sorry, but neither of you are qualified to even have made it this far. Cecilia, from what your sister's told me, you only have five badges, and...N, right? N, do you even have any to begin with? Besides, you'd need to battle the Elite Four before you could even get to the inner chamber, where you'd have to challenge—"

"Your Pokemon," N realized. "He died, didn't he? Your companion. Your best friend."

I saw sadness in Alder's eyes. "How did you—"

"You lost your best friend and lost the motivation to battle. You decided to wander instead of battle. Psychologically, you are weak without him."

"Stop talking about my Pokemon!"

"Your entire career as a trainer and a Champion depended on him. He was like a Tirtouga shell, and you were the Pokemon. You were useless without him protecting you."

"Shut up, or I'll have to use force!"

"If Cecilia loses her friends—her _human_ friends—she'll be even more worse off than you are now. Think of it like that."

Alder plopped his butt on the ground and ruminated on what N had just said. He stared at the ground and nothing else. "I—I don't know what to say. You're right: I have been weak without my cherished Pokemon at my side. We—we used to do everything together. We were friends since I was a kid. I watched him grow and learn alongside me, and I trained him to be strong, motivated. Then that tragic accident took his life and—and..." Alder had to stop talking. His voice had started to crack. He clenched his teeth tightly in an attempt to hold back his tears. "...now I'm the weak one. I haven't shown strength or motivation. He could be looking down at me right now, wondering what happened to his trainer—the Champion. Ever since he died, I no longer saw myself as a Champion."

I walked over to Alder and crouched down to his level. I put my arm around him. "I'm so sorry," I sympathized.

"Your friend is right, Cecilia," Alder admitted. "He's taught me that losing a friend makes one lose more than just a friend—it makes you lose character. You begin to turn into a person that you don't even recognize anymore. I don't know what going to the inner chamber will do to help you save Candice and your friend, but I don't want you to not be able to save them in time. I don't want you to become me."

Alder pushed my hand away and stood up. I rejoined him and N at eye-level right after. Alder stood directly in the center of the platform. "Don't move," he warned us. Then, Alder stomped on the platform three times. After words, he yelled out, "_Ichiban!"_

The platform began to descend to Alder's inner sanctum. "So, what _is_ it that you two are planning to do while you're down here?" the Champion asked us.

N said nothing until the platform came to a complete stop at the bottom of a flight of stairs that seemed endless. (I didn't say anything because I wasn't even sure where he was going with this.) "Now I must help Team Plasma save all the world's Pokemon," was N's answer.

I was thrown off guard. "Woah, wait," I worried. "I thought that this was where Ghetsis was hiding Candice and August. I did _not_ think that you were just going to bring me here so you could help 'your people' liberate the Pokemon of the Unova region."

"Wait a minute!" Alder exclaimed. "_You're _the one who told all of those people to release their Pokemon!"

"Not me, but Sage Ghetsis. I'm their king, and I'm the one who actually gets to set all of them free," N explained. "Cecilia, we need to run. Now."

The two of us bolted away as fast as our teenage legs could move. Alder was on our trail, screaming out, "Stop! I won't let you get away with this!" as he followed after us.

Let me just say that running up those stairs was _not_ fun. Not only were those stairs steep, but there were a lot of stairs—more than I thought there were to begin with. Once I reached the top of the flight, I wanted to pass out, but N grabbed my arm and began to pull me towards the end of the platform we were on. We stood on the edge and looked down at the emptiness below us.

Alder had caught up to us eventually. "I will report you two to the International Police!" he stated.

_Like Summer would let them arrest me_, I thought.

Alder sent out a massive Pokemon that was colored in indigo and deep magenta. "Druddigon, go and keep them from escaping!" Alder demanded.

The Druddigon began to advance towards us. "N, think of something!" I begged out of panic.

"Give it a moment..."

The Pokemon got even closer with time, almost to the point where he could reach out and grab us. I wanted to pass out; N was patient and calm.

Then, something unbelievable happened: an entire castle rose up around the platform. Banners with the Team Plasma logo began to appear everywhere. The arena was changing, and it was enough to stop Alder and his Druddigon in their tracks.

When the transformation had completed, a bridge extending between the inner chamber and the Team Plasma structure appeared out of nowhere. A bunch of grunts crossed the bridge. One of them was carrying a grey cape that was folded up. Another was carrying an ancient crown. _N's royal clothing_, I thought.

"Our lord!" the minions chimed. The two carrying the royal garments stepped up and handed N his cape and crown. He put on the cape and affixed the crown on his head carefully. All but two of the grunts escorted him to the castle. Once they were on their way inside, the two that remained came over to me. One tied my hands behind my back, and the other blindfolded me. "Hey!" I yelled at them. "Let go of me!"

I felt something was wrong. I tried to contact N, but my mind wouldn't let me. _It's that dream mist rope again, isn't it?_ I thought.

I tried to wriggle my way free as the two grunts took me over the bridge. Alder called out to me, "Don't let Team Plasma liberate Pokemon from people! Think of the hysteria that will result! I know you mean no harm, Cecilia!"

That was the last thing I heard before we entered the castle. I didn't know what was going on. I was scared, afraid.

But I had to be brave.

_This is what I was meant to do_, I thought. _I was never meant to be a researcher. I was meant to save Unova. And now it's time._


	52. A Friend of N

**_A/N_**—_Alright! Can you believe it? Fifty-two chapters! :D As you may have noticed/read on my profile, I am finishing up _Long Division_. No, that doesn't mean that I'm just going to stop here and never work on the story again. It means that the story is wrapping up, and that its final chapters are being written. I have big plans for the characters that I created, though, so keep your eyes peeled, and enjoy these final chapters! Thank you everyone for reading. :)_

* * *

><p>I remember being thrown onto a carpeted floor. The slam of a door startled me. I was still bound and blinded and unaware of my surroundings. Those factors alone startled me even more. "Help!" I called out. "Somebody help me!"<p>

I got up on my knees and attempted to wobble on over to the door (or was it the wall?). Then, I slammed my body into the door, crying out, "Help!"

Eventually, I had to stop because my side began to hurt and my voice was faltering and weak. I collapsed to the floor and began to sob. I imagined N, Candice, and August in my mind. I wondered what had happened to them. I hoped that Candice was still alive, that August didn't fall into a trap, and that N still wanted to help me.

Then, I heard a squeaky little voice come from somewhere, but that somewhere sounded like it was inside of my head. It said to me, "Miss, are you okay?"

"Who is that?" I asked in panic. "How are you contacting me like this?"

"You smell like my friend, except you're not my friend. My friend used to live here with me, but he disappeared one day and left me here alone. Let me cut those ropes for you."

I felt soft fur rub up against my back as whatever-it-was broke the bounds for me. Once I was free, I rubbed my wrists and removed the blindfold. I looked around and saw a colorful playroom filled with toys. Then I noticed a cute little Pokemon staring at me. It was black with a red-tipped tuft of hair on its head. "Hi there, little guy," I said. "Did you bite me free?"

"I did," she said without moving its mouth.

I whipped out my Pokedex and scanned the Pokemon. _"Zorua: the Tricky Fox Pokemon. __To protect themselves from danger, they hide their true identities by transforming into people and Pokémon."_

"I'm a stranger, but you don't think I'm dangerous?" I asked her.

She replied, "No. Like I said, you smell like my old friend. That's enough to convince me that I can trust you."

"Who was your friend?" I asked. "Can you change forms and show me?"

The Zorua nodded and suddenly began to change forms. She had become N with a Zorua tail. "N!" I realized. "This is N's room!"

"You do know him," the Zorua understood.

"Yes. He saved my life several times. I need to get out of here so I can find him. I need to talk to him. He's here somewhere."

"I want to come, too." N's Zorua changed back into her original form. "I miss him."

"Me too, little friend. Me too."

She scampered onto my head and clung tightly to my hair, much like Celeste would if she was out of her Pokeball at the time. I bravely opened the door and walked out into a long hallway lined with doors. _I've got to be quiet,_ I thought.

I tiptoed down the hallway, being careful not to attract any attention to myself. However, the whole "stealthily creeping down the hallway" thing backfired. The Shadow Triad appeared out of thin air. "We meet again," the one on the left noticed.

"We're not letting you get away this time," said the one in the middle.

The one on the right added, "Now that you're here, we must keep you out of our way."

As the Triad closed in on the Zorua and I, something amazing happened. Someone swooped into the scene and knocked out one Triad member by kicking her rear and sending her flat on her face. The person then took the heads of the two remaining members and collided them with each other, temporarily knocking them out as well. "Missed me?" her voice asked.

I took a good look at her. It was Summer, and she was unscathed. "You're alive!" I realized.

"After beating up those three and a bunch of grunts, hell yeah I am!"

"The Triad stole my Cross-tranciever. I thought that you would've tapped into my watch's GPS to find me and end up trapped by Team Plasma."

"Please. I may still be a novice agent, but I'm smarter than that. I noticed suspicious activity, though, so I tapped into your Cross-tranciever's contact list and gave a certain gym leader a call." Summer brought her sunglasses down slightly so she could show me her eyes. She gave me a wink, as if I should've known who she was talking about.

And then it hit me. "You got in touch with Lenora?"

"You can't just break into an evil organization's headquarters unattended. What was even better was that she contacted all of the other leaders in the region, and they were all willing to help...except for Cilan, Cress, and Chili, that is."

I looked down at the Shadow Triad for a moment. _Could it be_—?I wondered. _Nah._ _No way._

Then, the Triad began to move. One member's arm jerked. Another's head turned to the other side. One even tried to push himself up. "We need to run," I warned Summer. "Now."

That was when we sprinted down the hallway. We weren't sure where we were headed, but it was away from the Triad. As we ran, I tried to reach N. _N,_ I thought, _are you there?_

_"Cecilia? You made it!"_

_Did you find Candice?_

_"About that..."_

_What?_

_"Ghetsis has her here and won't let her go until you come and meet us here."_

_So, where's 'here'?_

_"There's a massive, grandiose door down here on the bottom level. Travel on the western slopes only, as they're the ones that lead down here. You'd better hurry."_

_I guess I'd better do that._

"You were talking to him, weren't you?" the Zorua asked me.

"Yes, I was," I admitted.

"Incredible," Summer mused. "She can talk without opening her mouth. How peculiar. I've met so many interesting Pokemon since I met you, Cecilia. Is she yours?"

"No. N's," I explained. "The Zorua wanted to come with me. Long story. Let's just keep on moving. N said to take the ramps on the western side until we reach the basement level."

"And then what?"

I exhaled loudly. "We'll just have to see."


	53. Connecting to the Past

Summer and I had made it down a few levels when we were stopped by two women in the hallway. One had neat, straight pink hair with outgrown bangs. The other had yellow hair cut to her shoulder; unlike the other girl, she had bangs, and her hair was somewhat disorderly. They were both wearing identical strapless dresses, but the one with the pink hair had a sash going across hers. They both seemed very interested in conversing with us. "Excuse me," I snapped at them, "but what do _you two_ want?"

"My name is Anthea," introduced the girl with the pink hair.

"And mine is Concordia," introduced the yellow-haired one. "You must be the one."

"And by that you mean 'the Chosen One'?"

"Not just that," Anthea told me. "You're the one who brought out all of the qualities we believed that N would never display again."

"Care to explain a bit more?" I asked the duo.

"Come with us," Concordia instructed. "We'll explain for a brief moment. You need to rest before you face your final test anyhow."

**-x-**

We sat down in a quiet little parlor not too far down the hallway. I sat down in a cushioned chair, and Zorua was napping on my lap as I pet her pelt. Summer was leaning against a wall. "So," Anthea noticed, "you befriended N's Zorua."

"She's such a sweetheart," I said.

"Indeed," Concordia confirmed. "It's all we had left of N's innocence before you came along. Ghetsis took away N's childhood long ago."

"How so?"

Anthea began to explain, "N lived much of his life in this castle, only to be comforted by this Zorua."

Concordia continued with, "N spent some time living on his own, but Ghetsis intervened. He wanted to turn N into a trainer-hating monster, so he would release mortally wounded Pokemon into the wild for him to pity. When he returned to Team Plasma and allowed us to crown him our king, he was a whole different person. He left his Zorua with the intention that he was protecting her from the harshness of the real world."

"We thought that Ghetsis had completely taken away the young boy we'd watch grow over the past seventeen years of his life," Anthea admitted. "But you proved that his youthful self is still in there somewhere. Only love can cure corruption."

"Wait, I never said anything about love," I told the two.

"Oh, please," Summer said disapprovingly. "You guys kissed that one time. I saw it. I was there. Don't deny it; you like him—I mean, 'like him' like him."

Okay, so she got me there with that one.

"Okay, so maybe I _do_ kinda...sorta...have a crush on him," I confessed bashfully. "But what did you mean by 'the young boy' you two 'watched grow over the past seventeen years of his life,' Anthea?"

Anthea told me probably the most shocking thing since Pikachu: "Didn't you know? Ghetsis is N's adopted father."

"Uh, _what?_"

"Ghetsis adopted N back when he was a toddler. He needed a pawn that he could mold like clay into his own image. He needed to raise a child to be the perfect asset to his plan to take over Unova. And that was N. It's a sad thing to think that N, out of all people, never was loved by anyone. That's why it's amazing that he expresses feelings towards you. Your friendship alone was enough to change him—it was everything Ghetsis, let alone anyone, never showed towards him. We thank you for that."

"You're welcome, I suppose."

"It's time," Concordia announced, "for you to meet with fate, Cecilia."

**-x-**

I had finally made it. It was where I would discover if I really was meant to be the holder of the Dark Stone. It was where I would discover if my sister was really safe or not. It was where I would make my mark. It was where I would become a hero.

Summer, Zorua, and I were standing in front of a large, ornate door that was plated in gold. "This must be it," I stated after gulping nervously.

Zorua scurried back onto my head. "I'm ready," she announced.

Summer, on the other hand, wasn't quite ready. "I'm going to stay behind and keep watch out here. This is your battle, Cecilia, and not mine."

Out of nowhere, the Shadow Triad appeared. "Sage Ghetsis and Lord N await you inside," the three chimed in unison.

_Alright_, I thought as the Triad escorted me into the final fray. _Here goes...well, either everything or nothing._


	54. The Battle to End All Battles

Once I was inside, the Triad vanished and the door slammed shut. There was no turning back.

I was standing on an expansive platform that was positioned on top of a pool of water. The platform was very stable and was probably as long as two sports arenas placed side-by-side. There were decrepit pillars everywhere.

The platform thinned out into a small passageway, which lead to another platform the same size as mine. That's where N and a massive, white-colored Pokemon were standing. I carefully ran over to N and gave him a hug. As we did so, Zorua hopped off of my head and onto N's. After our hug had finished, N picked the Pokemon up and held her in his hands. "Zora," N said happily, "I can't believe that it's you—and after all these years!" He hugged the Pokemon tightly.

After that, Zora crawled back onto N's head, and he let her stay there. "So it appears that you've made it just in time," N told me. "Come. I'll bring you to Ghetsis and your sister."

The enormous Pokemon flew up into the air so N and I could pass, then it rested back on the platform again, waiting for N to finish what he had to do.

At the far end of the platform was a throne—N's, I assumed. Ghetsis was sitting in it, acting relaxed, as if everything was going to go his way without a doubt. Next to the throne was my sister, who was locked in a cage barely large enough to fit her petite body. "You have someone of mine," I told Ghetsis.

"Ah, but in order to set your sister free, you must prove that you are indeed the Chosen One," Ghetsis bartered. "Of course, the Dark Stone hasn't changed yet, has it? Hah! Proof that you're nothing but a lowly foreigner who is lost in a whole hell of a lot of trouble."

My hands formed fists. I wanted to punch Ghetsis, but I figured that, if I did, he'd either kill me or my sister. "At least I'm something," was my comeback response.

"Oh snap," Candice said. "You've been bu—"

"SHUT UP!" Ghetsis yelled. "You're lucky I haven't wasted you _or_ your sister yet. Now, let's see that Zekrom of yours. Shall we?"

A few more moments, and nothing happened.

"I knew it," Ghetsis said with hubris. "You were never the Chosen One to begin with. Maybe Reshiram's a bit hungry from being curled up into a ball for all of those years. Oh, Resh—"

I felt something vibrating from my backpack. I ripped it off of my back and rummaged through it until I found my Dark Stone. It was shining brightly and was vibrating. I felt it begin to tug upward, as if an invisible thread were dragging it into the sky, so I let go of it. Light then radiated from every crack and dent of the stone, and it began to vibrate even more violently this time. There was an explosion that eradicated all of the water from the arena. Then Zekrom landed in front of me on the large, empty portion of the platform. "Incredible..." I mused as I stared at the Pokemon with awe.

"Shit," Ghetsis murmured under his breath.

I got closer to the legendary dragon and touched its foot. "You really did choose me," I noted, directing my voice to Zekrom.

Zekrom said to me in a deep, noble voice, "Your ideals are favorable. You enjoy the world we live in now, where people and Pokemon live in unison. It has its flaws, but you are unaffected by that fact. You have found the beauty in an imperfect world. You welcome troubled, wayward, and stray Pokemon into your life because you find the beauty inside of their hearts. For that, I chose you over all the world's people." A smile came across my face.

Zekrom looked across the venue at Reshiram. "We meet again," Zekrom said.

"It's been a while, hasn't it?" Reshiram remarked.

"Okay," Candice interjected, "can someone _please_ tell me what's going on? I'm still lost."

Ghetsis explained, "Now Zekrom and Reshiram must battle it out. The winner will choose this story's ending."

"_Excuse_ me?" I asked in outrage. "You really expect me to bark commands at Zekrom?"

"Yes," Ghetsis said. "Yes I do."

"I'm not fighting."

"Oh, but you have to. If you don't, then you'll surrender to Team Plasma, and N will convince the world to release their Pokemon. Give up, and I—pardon, _we_—will mold the world into our image."

"But fighting Reshiram would be fighting N. And you haven't released my sister yet."

"All's fair in love and war. Choose one or the other."

I turned around and looked at my sister. "Release her."

"Not until you fight."

N commanded, "Release her, or I won't fight either."

"Fine," Ghetsis (finally) agreed.

He pulled a key out from a pocket in his oversized shawl and used it to unlock the cage. Candice jumped out and stretched her arms and legs. "FREEDOM!" she cheered. "Now can someone fill me in on the details?"

"If we live," I told her, "then I'll explain everything later."

"Oh. That sounds...pleasant."

I focused my attention on N and Reshiram. Zekrom flew in front of me, as if he was shielding me. Reshiram did the same for N. I took a deep breath, then whipped out my Pokedex. _Please have some info on its moves in here somewhere..._ I prayed.

Then the options popped up on screen: Fusion Bolt, Zen Headbutt, Giga Impact, Light Screen. _Fusion Bolt sounds promising,_ I assumed.

N said, "Take the first move. Ladies first."

I reluctantly called out, "Zekrom, use Fusion Bolt!"

Electricity pulsed from Zekrom. The shockwaves attacked Reshiram spot on. I could feel the fury building up inside of my opponent's Pokemon. N calmly counteracted with, "My friend Reshiram, use Fusion Flare."

The arena's temperature quickly went up about 50 degrees as fire emanated from Reshiram and attacked Zekrom. From there, N and I no longer needed to make commands. The two legendary Pokemon took matters into their own hands, rising up to continue their battle in the space above us. N and I took careful watch of the battle in front of us. I couldn't see where this battle was going; each Pokemon was weakening at the same steady rate, and a winner was uncertain. They both seemed to be in pain. I couldn't bear it. Then I started thinking about what Anthea told me: _"But you proved that his youthful self is still in there somewhere. Only love can cure corruption...Your friendship alone was enough to change him."_

The words _friendship _and _love_ stuck in my mind, and the phrase _"Only love can cure corruption_," played in my mind on repeat.

_Love_, I thought. _That's it._

I bravely yelled out, "ENOUGH!"

Reshiram and Zekrom stopped fighting. N asked me, "Why have you halted the battle?"

"Because," I told him, "I have a better solution."

"There _is_ no other solution," Ghetsis stated.

I turned around and yelled at him, "Yes, there is! It's this thing called love: something you never showed to your own son."

N blinked with disbelief a few times. "How did you know that he is my father?"

"Anthea and Concordia told me everything—including some things that you might not even know. Ghetsis took you in as his own, but not out of love. He surrounded you with abused Pokemon to make you think the way you do. Like I've been trying to tell you this whole time, he's been using you. We don't need to wage a war. War tears the world apart. If either of us wins, the results could still be catastrophic. If you win, Ghetsis will use Pokemon liberation to his advantage. He'll rise to power as the only person with the power over Pokemon. If we make a truce, we can preserve the world as it is. There will be no need for Team Plasma. You could spend more time bonding with Pokemon rather than separating them from humans. You can experience the love and friendship that Ghetsis never showed you by going out into the world and experiencing it for yourself."

N pondered my words for a few moments. "Your solution entices me."

Zekrom reflected on my words also, saying, "It reflects the ideals that brought me to you, Cecilia. I'm not against it."

"Neither am I," Reshiram agreed, "but I'm letting N decide what he feels is the best for all of us."

"N," Ghetsis advised convincingly, "don't fall for her ploy! You and I can create a truly better world if you win this final fight. Disregard her mudslinging towards me!"

Before N could call the final verdict, I implored, "Please. I have our best interests in mind. I—I love you, N. Honestly."


	55. This Ain't Goodbye

_**A/N**—...And now for the final, suspense-filled chapter of _Long Division_! I've had such a great time writing this story, and I hope that all of you enjoyed reading it. Keep posted, though—Cecilia's story doesn't necessarily end here. ;)_

* * *

><p>N made his final decision: "Reshiram, enough. Cecilia's words touched my heart. After much consideration, I realized something: Cecilia brought me back to reality. She helped make me more human. She's shown me affection. She's shown me that not all humans are vile creatures. And, reflecting back on her suggestion and my run-ins with her, she has a point. Liberation is not an option. Ghetsis, you <em>have <em>been using me, haven't you? That is why the grunts never looked highly upon me—you were giving them commands contrary to my philosophy so that you could usurp the throne from me after everyone across Unova and the rest of the globe releases their Pokemon. You never cared about me. You only care about yourself. You're emotionally unmoving and a ruthless, malevolent being. You're a truly corrupted, calloused man."

Ghetsis sneered. "Why, thank you for the compliments," he said. "Cecilia, since you've learned oh-so much about me, I suppose that I must expunge you from this planet." He grabbed a Pokeball from the pocket of his cloak and threw it in front of him. "Hydreigon, use Focus Blast on Cecilia!"

I ducked down and covered my head. I was too afraid to react. A vile-looking Dragon-type Pokemon was about to pummel me to a pulp. I was in so much shock that my reaction was to shout out a piercing screech filled with terror.

After a few moments, I stopped cowering and looked around me. _How am I not dead yet?_ I thought. _Or...is this Heaven?_

At my feet was N, who somehow managed to run in front of me to shield me from the Pokemon's attack. Candice was in the middle of a fist fight with Ghetsis. She was getting assistance from her Medichan, but Ghetsis was a formidable match and was still easily beating the both of them. However, my eyes and mind were focused only on N. I felt his wrists. There was no pulse. "You—" I said to N as I began to choke with sadness, "you saved my life. I—I'll never forget you for that." I was silent for a few moments. Tears dripped down my face and dripped onto N's shirt. I rested my head on his chest and continued to weep. "Why do the good always die young?"

I heard Zekrom say to Reshiram, "Look. Our fighting always results in death."

"It was a noble death," Reshiram noted, reflecting on his admiration of N, "but an unfortunate one."

"We can bring him back, but one of us must go back into a dormant state as a result."

"I'll do it," Reshiram offered.

"No," Zekrom refused. "Let me. I serve the girl. This will be my final act of servitude to her. It was nice to see you again, old rival."

"Let's hope it's not the last time we meet," Reshiram wished. "Next time, we shall form a truce. No more fighting. No more casualties."

With a flash of blue light, Zekrom changed back into the Dark Stone. At the same moment, I kissed N on the lips as my final farewell to him. When I was done, I looked down at him. I was still crying.

Then N's eyes blinked. He resumed breathing. His pulse returned. N was once again alive. He pushed himself up and looked around. "Zekrom sacrificed his freedom to save me," he understood as he stared at the stray Dark Stone lying on the ground. "I've never experienced so much loyalty between a Pokemon and its trainer in all my life. I'm glad that I made the right choice."

"I thought I'd lost you," I admitted. I gave him a hug. I didn't want to let him go. Tears of joy trickled down my face.

The doors to the fray flew open, and in ran Alder and Summer. "Ghetsis Harmonia," Summer announced, "for many violations of both Unovan law and international doctrine—including, but not limited to, several murder attempts, an array of kidnappings, and child abuse—you are hereby placed under arrest by the International Police."

Ghetsis pushed Candice and her Medicham aside and retaliated with, "You can't arrest me if you can't catch me. I can outrun two people without difficulty!"

He began to bolt for the door in hopes of freedom, but then help arrived. The leaders that came along with Summer to storm N's castle arrived and blocked the only exit. "You're not getting away that easily, honey," Lenora stated.

"Yeah, punk!" Clay agreed. "Ya mess with the hooves, ya get the horns. Now reach for the sky and surrender already!"

"Time to see what it's like when someone interrupts _your _show!" Elesa announced with vengeance in mind.

Ghetsis was frozen in place. He didn't expect to see that many heroes, that's for sure. He listened to Clay and lifted his hands in the air. Summer slapped handcuffs onto his wrists and began to drag him away. The gym leaders followed, forming a protective barrier around her and Ghetsis. They left the scene. That was the last time I would see Summer for a while.

I helped N get off of the ground. He walked over to where the Dark Stone was, picked it up, and handed it to me. "I—I believe this is yours," N said to me.

I took the Dark Stone from him and put it in my bag. I said, "Thank you. Thank you for everything. Really."

Then, we leaned in for a kiss. _I may not be in Heaven_, I thought, _but I hope this is what Heaven's like_.

Candice sent her Medicham back into its Pokeball, then ran over to me and gave me a hug that almost knocked me over. "You're the best sister anyone could ask for," she told me with sincerity.

Then, Alder came up to the three of us. "Well," Alder said, "I guess I owe you an apology, N. And Cecilia, I can't thank you enough for preventing the unthinkable from happening. If there is anything I can do to repay you for your valiance, don't hesitate to tell me—really."

"I'll pass for now," I told him, "but I'll keep your offer in mind."

"Take your time. It's the least I can do. Now I must be off. I need to rekindle my relationship with my Pokemon and train so that I can resume being the Champion of the Pokemon League. Farewell, my friends!"

And just like that, Alder was gone—out of sight.

"I'm afraid that I must be going as well," N announced.

My mouth gaped open. "But—but why?"

"I need to go off and rediscover myself—to learn my true purpose in this world, to learn more about the real me. I'd take you with me, but it's better that I go this one alone. At least for now."

"No." I refused to accept the fact that N was leaving me. "No. No. No. You can't go! Please—please don't!" My tears of sadness returned. "You—you can't—not now—"

"It pains me as well, but I must go off and reinvent myself. Don't worry, though: we'll cross paths again."

N unclipped the golden cube from his jeans and handed it to me. "What is this?" I asked as I wiped the tears from my cheeks.

"It's a level one Menger Sponge—a cube with an infinite surface area. I've had it since I was a child. The mechanics and mysteries behind it have always fascinated me. I want you to keep it to remember me by."

I gladly accepted the token. "I'm going to miss you."

He put his hand on my shoulder. "Like I said, we'll meet again. I promise."

Reshiram landed softly on the platform. N walked up to him and climbed onto the Pokemon's back. Zora dug her claws into N's cap. "Time to go, Reshiram," N said.

And just like that, Reshiram flew up into the air and crashed through the wall of the room. N was gone. I tried to tell N one last time that I loved him, but my connection had apparently disappeared—this time for good. I looked down at the Menger Sponge and began to cry again. "Candice," I told my sister, "I want to go home."

**-x-**

"So, you're really going to leave so soon?" Professor Juniper asked me as we said our farewells on a dock in Castelia City.

"Yeah," I confirmed. "This place bears too many memories. I need to go home and be with my family for a while. Maybe I'll return again one day."

"Well then. I thank you so much for your research on Reshiram and Zekrom. I'm going to compress it into one document and save it in my own personal archives for future reference. I also must thank you for recording Pokemon in this Pokedex for me." She waved my Pokedex in her hand. "Oh, and certainly I must thank you for saving Unova. I'll let you keep the Dark Stone. You've done a good job at protecting it this far_, _and Zekrom chose you, not me."

"Thank you, Professor Juniper. Good luck with your future research, and thanks for the exciting opportunity."

Candice ran over to the two of us. "Cecilia, we have to _go_! The boat's departing in a few minutes!" she warned me.

I waved Juniper goodbye as I ran to the boat with my sister. We got on just in time. The first thing we did while onboard was look over the railing on the top deck. Candice was waving goodbye to Juniper. However, I didn't. I was lost in thought. I began to recall the time N and I were looking out into the ocean surrounding Castelia City. _"I came here to clear my plagued mind,"_ I heard him say in my thoughts._ "The sounds of the waves and the chirping Pidove circling overhead both, in tangent, help me to relax. That's what I love about Castelia City."_

Just then, a Pidove landed on the railing next to me. I pet its head as I continued to look out into the ocean. As the flying-type Pokemon cooed peacefully, I said in a hushed voice under my breath, "All hail King N."

The boat lifted its anchor and started to move. The Pidove flew out into the open. My journey in Unova had ended, but my real journey was just beginning.


End file.
